


Eternal Life

by silvertrails



Series: Eternal Life [1]
Category: Hamilton - Miranda
Genre: F/F, F/M, M/M, Vampires
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-28
Updated: 2020-01-29
Packaged: 2020-10-29 17:14:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 32
Words: 22,071
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20800040
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/silvertrails/pseuds/silvertrails
Summary: Alexander Hamilton is dying, but a vampire comes to visit the night before his family come to say good-bye.I am editing this and making a few changes. There will be a sequel. I will add characters and pairings as I write.





	1. Chapter 1

**Eternal Life  
** By CC  
January 2019  
Edited: September 2019 

I do not own Hamilton-Miranda characters. I’m just playing with them for a while.

* * *

**Greenwich Village, 1804**

Alexander lay on the bed at his friend William Bayard’s house, trying to rest. He could no longer feel his legs, and though Doctor Hosack had given him something for the pain, it was still bad. He had taken communion from Bishop Moore and repented his sins. He only hoped his strength would be enough to wait for Betsey and his children to come.

He was dozing lightly when time seemed to stop even as the candles in the bedroom were extinguished. He was not in complete darkness, though. A tall dark-haired man was standing before him, his face beautiful and luminous. The man’s eyes were blue and almost too brilliant, and he was dressed in strange clothes.

“Who…?” 

“Do not be afraid, beautiful one. It is a shame that you are about to die. So young and full of life until you decided to tempt fate in that duel.”

Alexander shivered. Was this Death?

The man… No, this was not a man, not human.

“Not human, you are right, but I can give you a new life if you so wish. You would have time to do all the things in your mind

Alexander realized that the creature had read his thoughts, but his fevered mind focused on “new life” and “time”. If he could go back to his former life… 

“Not your former life, I am afraid,” the creature said, “and you would have to stay away from your family.”

“Then I… refuse."

“You would have more time to write…”

“Not without Betsey…”

“You could watch her from afar, though it will only bring you pain.”

“Why are you so determined to give me…?”

“Because I hate the loss of someone like you, and because you are beautiful and creatures like me are drawn to beauty.”

“What are… you?”

The creature smiled wider and let Alexander see his fangs. 

Vampire!

An evil creature, but there is a cross here, so how could he…?

This had to be a dream.

“Not a dream, lovely one, but the promise of a future. We are what we are, and though your religious upbringing is making you believe that we are damned, vampires come from a time when your god was known as Yahweh, a Canaanite god. We drink human blood, but we have no part with the Christian God or the devil.”

Alexander looked at the creature’s beautiful eyes, and he heard the vampire’s name in his mind. Hennu, an ancient Egyptian noble who was made a vampire by the Mother of them all. 

“Betsey… My children…”

“You will see them again, but I warn you, it will only bring pain to you.”

“I want it!” Alexander said, exhaustion almost making him faint.

“Not yet,” Hennu said. “You have to die to your family first. I will give you something that will keep you alive if only I come back to you.”

The vampire bit his wrist and the scent of blood overwhelmed Alexander’s senses. He opened his mouth and drank what was offered to him. It ended too fast. Alexander moaned in anguish.

“Tomorrow, at night, I will come for you. Fear not my child. You will stay alive until tomorrow and see your family again, and after you die, I will give you the gift of eternal life.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thomas is disturbed by the news of Alexander Hamilton's death.

**The Capitol**

Thomas Jefferson sat at his desk, holding the message an aide had brought moments ago. Alexander Hamilton was dead, after a duel with Vice President Burr. Apparently, Burr had taken offense at something Hamilton had said, or did. It did not matter. Hamilton was dead, and Burr had escaped to avoid a trial for murder. 

Thomas himself had never liked Hamilton. Nevertheless, he did not deserve to die so young; his wife and children would suffer for it. Thomas would have to do something about it. Maybe speak to Angelica? 

_Why am I thinking of helping Alexander’s widow?_

_Why am I calling him by name?_

Thomas still remembered Hamilton’s passionate defense of his financial program, but he also remembered how he abandoned Lafayette to his fate when he convinced Washington to issue a proclamation of neutrality. Gilbert still considered Hamilton his friend, though, and he would mourn his death. Many would…

There was a knock on the door. 

“Mister President, Secretary Madison is here.”

"Let him in.”

James was holding a paper, and he looked concerned. “Have you heard about Burr and Hamilton?”

Thomas gestured for Madison to take a seat. “I have.” 

“And what do you think?”

“That Burr has made a terrible mistake.”

James nodded. “You look shaken.”

“A man we knew has been killed in a duel, my Vice President is nowhere to be found. Burr is part of my government, and he has killed the leader of the Federalists.”

James stared at him for a moment, as if searching for something. Then he simply nodded. 

“Are you making a statement about the duel?”

Thomas thought about it for a moment. It would be right thing to do, but he doubted anyone would believe that he was sincere. Burr would be prosecuted anyway. 

“Thomas?”

“No. I will keep a respectful silence, and let his comrades honor him. Maybe Gallatin could say some words as Secretary of Treasury. After all, Alexander… I mean, Hamilton was the first in his post.”

Madison nodded. “Is there something else in your mind?”

“Actually, yes. I would like to find a way to help Ms. Hamilton and her children…”


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In the Trinity Church Cemetery...

**Trinity Church Cemetery**

John would have stopped the duel had he been given the chance, but his maker had forbidden it. There was also the fact that John fell into the death-like sleep before dawn, and Hennu prevented him from drinking Aaron Burr’s blood.

_We must not interfere in human affair, my child. We are vulnerable when the sun is up. If humans find our resting place, they will put sticks in our hearts, and when they see we do not die, they will burn us. I might survive it, for I am ancient, but you will not._

John had begged Hennu to let him take Alexander away, but it had been in vain. Little he knew that his maker was going to bring Alexander through.

“Stay out of sight, John,” Hennu said. “Alexander cannot see you until the process is over.”

John nodded. “Will he be all right?”

“We will know it soon. Now do as I say.”

John had hunted before coming with Hennu to the cemetery, and he could feel the warm blood coursing through his veins. He had taken a thug, an evildoer, like his maker had taught him. 

_Stop before he dies, child. You are not strong enough to swallow the death yet. Your strength will grow in time._

The feeling when feeding on human blood was still the closest to completion, much more intense, but never enough. Since Hennu brought John through he felt a hunger that could not be sated. Lafayette was gone, and John would never bring him into this life.

John moved out of sight, and looked at his maker moved the earth with the power of his mind. Alexander’s body was there, and soon he would become one of the undead.

_Why did you let him die, Hennu?_

_He needed to die in front of his family, but the blood I gave him is already working on his body, preserving it. Do you not remember how it was for you?_

John had shaken his head. He did not remember, and this scared him. At least he would be able to explain things to Alexander, and help him adapt to this new life. John had agreed to be a vampire, or so Hennu said. John had been close when Hennu asked Alexander, and he had heard his friend’s answer.

Alexander had agreed to become a vampire, but things could still go wrong, and in that case Hennu would kill him. John prayed that it was not so. He missed his friend and former lover. He wanted Alexander back in his life.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hennu turns Alexander into a vampire, but something else happens...

There was something warm in his mouth, like fire that burned his insides, yet he could not stop drinking. It reached every part of his body, warming it, awakening it to a myriad of sensations as the night sang around him. Then the fountain of life was taken away, and he cried out, trying to drink more, but an iron grip on his hand and the feeling of sharp blades cutting his neck held him hostage to his tormentor.

The lights dimmed, and the night was dark and silent once again, and he could not move or speak. What was happening to him? Had he not died already? Why give him the fountain of life just to take it from him again?

Then the liquid fire returned, and again his senses exploded as the night came alive once again, and this time the blessed fire was not taken from him, and the strong arms held him close as he fed from his wrist. 

He started and tried to move away, but he was powerless in the creature’s grasp. His heart was beating wildly, and when the creature sank his fangs in his neck once again, he stopped fighting and waited for death. Then the liquid fire returned for one last time. 

Blood...

“It is done,” the creature said. “Look at me.”

He opened his eyes. When had he closed them? 

“I am your maker, and you will obey me.”

“My m-maker?”

The creature smoothed his hair. “I have no wish to put you in a cage after freeing you from mortality, my child, but you will need guidance until you are strong enough to be on your own.”

He could not understand, but when his maker let him go, he shivered at the loss of contact. 

“Look at everything with your vampire eyes, Alexander.”

Was that his name?

“Hennu! He doesn’t remember!”

Alexander moved back when he saw the newcomer, a beautiful creature with wild brown curls. Vampires… Was that what his maker said? 

“Am I a vampire now?”

“Alexander, I am John. Look at me!”

“John, stop it,” Hennu said. He pushed John aside. 

“Please do not kill him, Hennu!”

Hennu raised a hand, and John fell to the ground. Alexander stood there, paralyzed. Was Hennu going to kill him now? 

“I will not kill you, Alexander. I love you. You are my child. I love John too, though sometimes he tries my patience.”

John stood, and his face was a mask of fear and relief. 

“I cannot read your mind, because you are my child,” Hennu continued. “Your memory might come back, but even if it never does, you re safe with us.” He looked at John. “Help him now, child.”

Alexander opened his mouth to speak, but a terrible pain made him fall to his knees. John crouched at his side.

“The pain will pass, Alexander," he said. "It is mortal death, nothing more. Once it is over, we will be together forever.”


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thomas receives a surprising visit, but Alexander is dead, so how can this be?

**The Capitol**

It was night, and Thomas was sitting at his desk, reading the last letter from Captain Lewis. The Corps of Discovery Expedition had reached the Platte River, near Sioux territory. Hopefully they were doing well. The letter’s date was nine days after Hamilton died.

_Why am I counting days as if his death was…_

Thomas shook his head, and put the letter aside. He would answer it tomorrow afternoon. He needed to take care of other duties first, though this was the most important in his eyes. After buying Louisiana from the French, the Union had doubled its size, but there was much work to do yet. Thomas still had to worry about Spain, but for now any imperial threat from Europe had been stopped.

He was about to read another letter when a window opened and the night wind blew off the room’s candles. Strange, Jefferson thought as he rose from his seat and went to close the window. He was certain that he had shut it properly.

The hairs on the nape of his neck suddenly stood up. Thomas stilled. There was someone in the room, but how was that possible. No one was that fast. He turned around slowly, wondering if he was going to meet his end like…

“Hamilton?”

“Is that my name too?”

Thomas stepped back, still not believing his eyes. Hamilton looked pale, but his eyes were almost too brilliant. 

“I thought I was called Alexander…”

“This must be a dream or a hallucination…”

Hamilton smiled, and the long canines in his mouth made Thomas shiver. He tried to move, but his body was not obeying him, and then Hamilton was on him, holding him close in an iron-grip embrace.

“What are you?”

Hamilton looked at him for a moment. Then he leaned forward and sank his fangs in Thomas’ neck. 

_Vampires are not real!_

_But we are, you beautiful man._

Thomas tried to fight, to push Hamilton away, but the initial pain had turned into a blissful languor as the vampire drank his blood. Thomas was going to die in Hamilton’s arms, and he did not care, but suddenly the feeling stopped, and Hamilton pulled away from him.

Or was pulled away, Thomas realized as another creature caught him in its arms before he fell. “You almost killed the president of this country, you fool!”

“He knows who I am! I saw images in his mind!”

“Of course he knows you! Where is John?”

“I escaped from him while he was feeding. He swoons sometimes…”

Thomas was shaking in the other vampire’s arms, but he could not open his eyes. The room seemed to be swimming around him. If this was a dream, he really needed to relax, but if this was reality…

“Leave,” the other vampire said. 

“But H---”

“I will kill him if you say my name out loud.”

“No, please!”

“Then do as I say.”

Apparently Hamilton obeyed because Thomas could no longer hear his voice. The other vampire was carrying him to his bedroom, and it felt like being carried by a statue, a very cold statue. Once he was on his bed, the vampire spoke.

“I would make you a vampire too, but I have no wish to mingle in human affairs. Alexander is new, and he cannot remember who he was. I apologize, President Jefferson, for my child’s intrusion, and for what I am about to do now. Look at me.

Thomas opened his eyes and looked into the vampire’s blue ones. He was beautiful, and for a moment Thomas wished he could go with him, but the vampire broke the spell when he sank his teeth into Thomas’ neck.

_Forget this ever happened, Thomas. You are sick, nothing else. This was nothing but a fevered dream. You will not remember anything when you wake up._

_Thomas tried to hold onto the memories, but the vampire’s will was too strong and little by little the images he tried to keep in his mind disappeared. The only thing he could remember was Alexander’s brilliant eyes, but that tiny bit of information escaped and buried itself into the deepest recesses of Thomas’ mind._


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John tries to explain Alexander why he can't seek Thomas Jefferson again.

**Trinity Church Cemetery**

Hennu was furious, and John understood why. He should have kept an eye on Alexander; he shouldn’t have swallowed the death when feeding on that sailor. He was strong enough to do it now, but sometimes the pleasure was so intense that he swooned. It happened to Hennu too, John was certain of it, but he was not about to mention it now.

“I am sorry, Hennu.”

“You should be,” Hennu said. His voice was cold. “If I had not arrived in time, Alexander would have killed the President. Are you aware of what would have happened if someone found the President dead and with the marks on a vampire’s fangs in his neck?”

“He did not believe in vampires,” Alexander said.

Hennu turned to him, and Alexander grew silent instantly. John wanted to comfort Alexander, but he knew that this was for his own good. He had to learn to obey Hennu, and he had to be careful and not interfere in the human world.

“It will never happen again,” John said.

“You can be certain of that.”

“What do you mean?”

"From now on I will be the one to take Alexander to feed. You can come, but I will not leave you two alone until you both have fed.”

John nodded, knowing that once Hennu made a decision, nothing could change his mind. He looked at Alexander, who was standing there, eyes fixed on the ground, mind whirling with thoughts of Jefferson. 

“I have things to do now,” Hennu said. “I expect you two at the house before dawn. Do not hunt for more blood tonight.”

Both he and Alexander nodded. John had drunk his fill, but Alexander was still hungry. It was obvious on the paleness of his face and the slight shaking of his hands. John sighed.

“Come here, Alex,” he said. “Take from me.”

Alexander’s eyes widened. “But Hennu said not to---”

"---hunt for blood. You will not be hunting. I am giving it to you. I have drunk more than my fill tonight.”

Alexander came closer, hunger all too clear in his eyes, but he did not make any move to take John’s blood. Of course, he would not know how to do it, John mused. 

“You could take it from my wrist,” John said, “but it will be more pleasurable if you take it from my neck.”

“What if I drain you?”

“I will stop you before that happens.” John raised his hand and made a cut in his neck with his sharp nails. The next moment Alexander was drinking from him with so fast that John felt his heart jump in his chest. 

_Steady,_ he sent to Alexander’s mind. He also pushed his friend back a little. Alexander got the message and slowed down the pace of his drinking. John fell to his knees, dragging Alexander down with him. Waves of pleasure coursed through his body, but he was determined not to give in. It would be less dangerous is he dared to take blood from Alexander and complete the circle of blood, the vampire kiss.

_He doesn’t remember me, or our relationship. I can’t take advantage of his vulnerable state._

“Enough,” he managed to say, pushing Alexander away with firm hands.

His eyes were glazed. “I need more…”

“But I can’t give you more, Alex.”

Alexander took a deep breath and settled down. “I’m sorry…”

John smiled, “Don’t be.” He was so hungry now that he would take Alexander and drink from him. He could not do that. 

“So tell me, why did you feed on Thomas Jefferson?”

“I didn’t know he was the President…”

“Didn’t you read his mind first? Honestly, everyone knows that the President lives in the Capitol. Have you forgotten everything?”

“No, I just thought that it would be interesting to get into the building, and after wandering around he was the only interesting human in it. I don’t know why, but I felt drawn to him.”

“He was your political enemy!”

“What?”

“Oh… Please don’t mention this to Hennu. He doesn’t want me to tell you about your past yet.”

“I won’t, but tell me more about Thomas Jefferson. Was he the one who killed me?”

“No! That was the Vice President, Aaron Burr. Damn it! Stop asking me questions. I’m in trouble already.”

Alexander looked concerned. “You are right. Maybe we should go back to the house?”

“That’s a good idea. Remember, wait for Hennu to tell you things, and please don’t ask him about Aaron Burr.”

“Can I ask him about Thomas Jefferson?”

John rolled his eyes. “No! Forget about Jefferson. He is the President, and we have done him enough harm.”

“Hennu said he will not remember anything…”

“And he is right, but Jefferson will be sick for days.”

“Maybe if I give him some blood…”

John shook his head and pulled Alexander along with him. “You are the most annoying, stubborn, and reckless person I’ve known.”

“But you love me,” Alexander said, grinning.

“I do love you, Alexander, so please try not to get into more trouble. I don’t want Hennu to take us away, and he will do that if you seek Jefferson again.”

Alexander paled. “No! I will stay away from him. I promise!”

“Good, now come with me.”

Alexander nodded, managing somehow to stay silent. John was worried for him. It was obvious that Alexander “the vampire” liked Jefferson, and that was a dangerous thing. He only hoped that Alexander recovered his memory and remembered that he and Jefferson barely spoke to each other. Hopefully that would keep Alexander from going to the Capitol again.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thomas wakes up feeling weak and thirsty.

**The Capitol**

Thomas lay on his bed, eyes closed, barely aware of whatever Doctor Dunglison was doing to him. Normally Thomas would have tried to take care of whatever illness he had by taking quinine bark, but he was unable to speak at the moment. His neck hurt a little, and his head throbbed with pain. Only when he felt the lancet cut his arm was he able to move.

“Mister President, stay calm.”

“No… no bleeding…”

“Thomas, please, Doctor Dunglison is trying to help you.”

“No more… Jemmy, please…”

“Maybe we should let him rest for a moment, Doctor. I will stay here with him.”

The Doctor said something to James, and they seemed to be arguing about something, but a nurse pressed a clean cloth on his wound and bandaged his arm. That alone calmed Thomas. He had lost enough blood…

“What did you say?”

“I…” Thomas’ eyes started to close, but James’ hands on his face made him look at his friend.

“Thomas, you said that you have lost enough blood. When was that? Doctor Dunglison should have checked you more thoroughly. I will call him…”

“Wait…” Thomas grabbed James’ wrist, or tried to because his hand fell on the bed. Why was he feeling so weak?

“Are you bleeding, coughing blood…?”

“No…”

James arranged his covers and after a moment seemed to calm down. “Your fever is still high, but you are too pale… Try to rest now, Thomas. Patsy will be here soon.”

Thomas hummed, already drifting off. The damp cloth on his forehead felt good.

He dreamed of Hamilton, pale as a ghost, fiery red hair like a halo around his face, eyes so bright that it hurt. So beautiful… Then came the other, the blond creature who sent Hamilton away. 

When Thomas woke up again, James was there, along with Patsy. Doctor Dunglison was there too.

“Father? How do you feel?”

“Weak… thirsty…”

Patsy’s hand was cool on his forehead. “Your fever has broken.”

“He should drink this,” Doctor Dunglison said. 

Thomas eyed the cup suspiciously, but he was too thirsty to protest. The medicine was… refreshing…

“Maybe we should give him something to eat,” Patsy told the doctor. When he nodded, she turned back to look at Thomas. “I will be back soon, father.”

“Thank you, my darling.”

James sat beside Thomas’ bed. “You gave us a fright, Thomas. I am relieved to see you awake at last.”

“I was awake last night…”

James just looked at him. 

“How long have I been asleep?”

“Five days,” James said, “but the danger has passed. You are on the path to recovery.”

Thomas nodded, and then noticed his bandaged arm. He looked at James, who sighed.

“Doctor Dunglison bled you. Don’t look at me like that. You were delirious and calling for Hamilton. Patsy authorized the procedure. We were concerned…”

_Hamilton? Why would I call for Hamilton?_

“What is wrong, Thomas?” James asked quietly. “I know you did not hate Hamilton. Neither did I, but you spoke of him as if he were alive.”

Thomas shivered. 

“Hamilton is dead.”

“I know, which is why…” James trailed off when Patsy came into the bedroom, a servant bringing a soup in a tray. Thomas could feel a pang if hunger at the smell of homemade soup. 

“Let me help you, Father,” Patsy said, and together with James they put a few pillows behind his back, and then his daughter started to feed him.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hennu makes a visit to The Grange. John must make sure that Alexander obeys their maker and stay put while they watch it all from afar.

**The Grange**

John stood beside Alexander waiting for Hennu to come. They had fed together, the three of them, and then Hennu had ordered them to wait for him. John could not read Hennu’s mind, but he knew what was their maker had planned. It was imperative that Alexander remembered who he was, and stopped thinking of going back to Jefferson. 

Maybe seeing his family again would do the trick. 

It would be painful, John knew, but the alternative was worse. If Alexander approached Jefferson again, Hennu would kill him. Most mortals no longer believed in vampires, but the memory of ancient blood drinkers was simply buried deep in the darkest recesses of their minds. 

Alexander’s fixation with Jefferson was dangerous. 

“Why is he taking so long?” Alexander asked. 

“Be patient, Alex.”

“I… heard that Jefferson has been sick.”

John closed his eyes and tightened his fists. “Don’t.”

“I am worried about him,” Alexander continued. “What if he dies? It will be my fault! And I don’t want him to die.”

“You already know how things were between you two. Why can you not forget about him?”

Hennu had made Alexander read the Federalist Papers, and old newspapers, in the hopes of bringing him back to his senses. 

“How can a man like him have slaves? I want to ask him about this. I…”

Alexander trailed off when they saw Hennu coming. He had fed again, and changed his clothes. He looked almost human, save for his eyes and his glass-like nails.

“Hush now,” John said.

Alexander nodded.

“Come with me,” Hennu said. “I will visit a woman who has lost her husband recently. I want you to watch from afar.”

“Who is this woman?” Alexander asked.

“You will see, my child.”

They moved faster than mortal eyes could see until they were near the house, Alexander’s home until he died. Now he understood why Hennu had fed again and changed his attire. The older vampire was putting on a pair of gloves, and golden rimmed spectacles. John had believed that Hennu would make Alexander watch his family from outside, but he was going to visit Elizabeth Hamilton!

“You stay here, and don’t let anyone see you. No matter what happens, you must stay here, do you understand?”

Alexander nodded, silent for once. John shivered. If Alexander remembered, it would come to him to keep him in line. Hennu looked at John, cold determination in his eyes. 

“Who are these people?” Alexander asked. “Tell me, John! Who are these people?”

John placed an arm around Alexander’s shoulders. “You know them, but they believe you are dead. They cannot see you, do you understand?”

Alexander was trembling. “What is Hennu going to do? He cannot kill them! Tell me he will not kill them!”

“Nothing will happen to them if you obey,” John said softly. “Now stay quiet and look. Hennu is at the door.”

Elizabeth Hamilton came at the door, along with Angelica Church. John was about to try to listen to their conversation with Hennu when Alexander lunged forward. John caught him easily.

“Betsey! My Betsey!”

“Calm down, Alex.”

“I have to go to her! What if Hennu kills my family? Why are they allowing him inside the house? John, please, you have to let me go. My children are there! Angelica is too!”

“Hennu won’t harm them unless you disobey him. Please, Alexander, listen to me. I know ow painful this is for you…”

“How would you know?”

John felt anger surge in his chest, but he kept a firm grip on Alexander’s frame. “I lost my family too. I lost you, Alexander, but you would not care about that.”

Aexander sagged against John’s body. “I never stopped loving you, Jacky. I just… loved Betsey too…”

“And Angelica, and Maria Reynolds, and now Jefferson.”

“I don’t love Jefferson!”

“You are obsessed enough with him.”

John was very aware that this was not the moment to say these things to Alexander, but the only reason he survived after his former lover’s marriage was Lafayette’s presence, and love.

_I lost Lafayette too…_

Alexander was looking at his house now, eyes fixed on the window where they could see Hennu speaking with Eliza and Angelica. John could see James Alexander standing beside his mother, who had young Philip in her arm. John had never met his daughter while he was alive, but he had watched Fanny from afar until she eloped with Francis Henderson. Fanny had a son now…

“I am sorry, John,” Alexander said. “I never meant to hurt you. We could not be together. You were married, and---”

“You loved Betsey. I know, Alex. I didn’t mean to be harsh. I do know how painful this is. I watched you from afar, and I have a daughter.”

And Lafayette, but he was not going to tell Alexander about that.

“Look, Hennu’s visit is over.”

“And now I know who I am… You can let go of me, John.”

John did as Alexander said, keeping his eyes on his friend. Hopefully once the pain subsided, Alexander would adapt to their new life. They had lost those closest to them, but at least they had each other now.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alexander is at Trinity Church Cemetery when Thomas and James Madison come to visit his tomb.

**Trinity Church Cemetery**

Alexander stood in the shadows, watching the silent tombs, feeling the scent of the fresh earth fill his nostrils. Winter was coming, which meant shorter days, and more time to roam through the streets of New York. Alexander had been a vampire for five months now, and he had gone from grief to anger, and then to resignation after Hennu forced him to remember his past. He hunted alone now, after promising Hennu to stay away from Jefferson, and to observe his family from afar. 

_You will have to let them go, too, Alexander. Take your time, but beware. Despair can destroy us; you will have to move on like John did._

It was not easy, not at all. Even now Alexander had caught John watching Hercules Mulligan from afar. Alexander himself had come near Hercules house one night, but mostly he lingered near The Grange, watching his own family. It soothed him and pained him. Eliza and the children seemed to be well, but Angie, his beautiful daughter, was slowly descending into madness. 

Angie had lost her mind when Philip died. She still played the piano, but she no longer recognized her siblings. Only Eliza could reach her, and though Angie remained docile and in a childlike state, there would be no recovery for her. It was painful to know that he could not help her in any way. Hennu had told him and John tales about vampires who had given the Blood to mentally ill persons and the result had been disastrous.

The scent of blood shook Alexander out of his musings. He should have heard the steps, the beating of the humans’ hearts, but he had been so lost in his thoughts… 

_A vampire who is easily distracted will face an untimely death._

Now Alexander was fully alert, and from his place in the shadows he could see two men approaching. He knew these men!

“Care to tell me why we are here, Thomas?”

“I have already told you, James. I need to see his tomb.”

Madison sighed. “You have seen his tomb before. Thomas, this is madness…”

“I know you do not believe me, but I saw Hamilton after he died, and he attacked me.”

“You were sick, Thomas.”

“Because Hamilton attacked me!”

Alexander shivered, the scent of Thomas’ blood reminding him of its taste. It was sweet and laced with wine. If only he could… 

_No! Hennu will kill him if I dare. I might kill him if I get too carried away._

“I will not discuss that topic with you again,” Madison said. “Vampires are not real, and whatever happened to you that day, Hamilton had nothing to do with it.”

“I know you will never believe me,” Thomas said. There was a tint of bitterness, and anger in his voice.

“You know I am here for you, Thomas. I am your friend.”

Thomas smiled, but his eyes were sad. “I know, Jemmy. I just wished…” He sighed. 

“There is his tomb,” Madison said. “Mrs. Hamilton keeps it and Philip’s with flowers. Nothing has changed.”

Jefferson nodded, but he kept looking at Alexander’s tomb in a way that made him uneasy. Why would Jefferson make him uneasy now that he was a creature of the night? Was Jefferson planning to find his lair and put a stake through his heart? It would not work, Alexander knew it now, but the most important problem was that if they opened the tomb, they would find no body!

Alexander was about to try to read Jefferson’s mind when he sensed John was coming to him. He seemed disturbed. Alexander sent John a general sense of his location in the cemetery, carefully hiding Jefferson’s and Madison’s presences. Hopefully they would leave soon.

“Let’s go back, Thomas.”

“All right… Wait

“What now?” 

“This was not here last night!”

“You came here last night?”

Jefferson came last night?

_What are you doing with Jefferson and Madison?_

Alexander sighed. He knew that John would not kill them, but he sounded angry. Alexander could not leave his hiding place just yet. He needed to know what Jefferson was speaking about.

“A button? Thomas, I swear---”

“It’s Hamilton’s. He had no sense of fashion, but these buttons were unique. I bet he had them made for him. We could ask Mulligan.”

“We are not going to ask Mulligan.”

Thomas put the button in his pocket and finally stated walking away from Alexander’s tomb. Hercules had made those buttons for Alexander’s favorite coat, and Eliza had buried him with it. 

_I have to recover it!_

A hand grabbed his arm. “No, you don’t.”

It was John, and his face was a mixture of anger and disbelief. He was quite agitated, and it was not only because Alexander almost followed Jefferson. 

“What is wrong, John?”

“Hennu has left the city.”


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thomas sees someone at the cemetery...

Thomas followed James, the button in his pocket, a new sense of purpose in his mind. He could not go and ask Elizabeth Schuyler if she buried her husband with that coat; and giving the button to her would only made her suffer if that was so. Was Hamilton alive? Did he come to his tomb to rest after roaming the streets of New York? 

_Vampires are not real, James had said. Those dreams are not memories, Thomas. You have been very sick, and somehow you invented a reason for Hamilton to be alive. Why? I don’t know. Maybe you miss the arguments with him._

Those had been James’ words when they spoke about this a few days ago, and this visit to Hamilton’s tomb had been the last thing Thomas asked his friend to do for him. 

Thomas had never expected to find something that might prove him true, but if Hamilton was a vampire, why was he looking for the man? 

_Because I remember how it felt when he drank my blood. I remember the brief flash of pain turned into pleasure when I was in his arms. I was willing to die, no matter what. Is that it? Is death what I am looking for?_

He shivered.

“Thomas?”

“I’m fine.”

James scrutinized him for a moment. “Let’s go.”

Thomas nodded, but when he was about to leave the cemetery with James, the sudden feeling of eyes watching him made him stop. He turned around and saw a flash of red hair and too brilliant eyes…

“Hamilton! James, that’s Hamilton there!”

James grabbed his arm. “Thomas, stop! There is no one there!”

Thomas easily got free from James’ grip and rushed back into the cemetery. He could hear James calling him, but he was no longer thinking rationally. He had to find Hamilton!

_STOP!_

Thomas fell to his knees, clutching his head. A moment later James fell to his knees, gasping for breath. Thomas reached out and James took his hand. They stayed like that for a long moment, supporting each other. Eventually James seemed to have his breath under control, and Thomas could open his eyes without feeling dizzy. 

“Are you all right, Jemmy?”

“No… Yes… What was that?”

“You heard it?”

James looked shaken. “I did!”

“I don’t know who that was,” Thomas said. He stood and gave his hand to James. 

“Thank you… I think we should leave, Thomas. Whoever that was, whatever that was it doesn’t want us to be here.”

“That was not Hamilton…”

“It didn’t sound like him, no…”

Thomas looked at James, trying to gauge his state of mind. It was one thing to hear your friend say “crazy things” and other to hear a voice in your head. They couldn’t be losing their minds at the same time, but who had stopped them?

“Let us leave, James,” Thomas said. He looked back but there was no sign of Hamilton or anyone else.

“Yes, let’s go back to Washington. Maybe we should take a carriage and have our horses sent back tomorrow?”

Thomas nodded slowly. “That might be for the best.”

As they left the cemetery, Thomas wondered who had stopped them. Was that another vampire? Maybe the one who stopped Hamilton the last time? The voice sounded different. Either way, Thomas only hoped that Hamilton was all right, and the other vampire didn’t come for James.


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Someone comes, someone stays...

John barely managed to stop Alexander from rushing toward Jefferson and Madison. They had heard the voice too, and it was not Hennu! Who could this be? Alexander had stopped trying to follow Jefferson and was now listening to the sound of a powerful heart beating, coming closer as they waited together.

A tall woman with long blond hair, dressed like a man, moved out of the shadows. She radiated power. Had she killed Hennu?

“Hennu is alive.”

“Then where is he?” John asked. 

“He left New York at my request.”

“Why would Hennu do that?” Alexander asked. 

The vampire smiled, amused. “So, you are the new one. Hennu said that you are as reckless as his first child, but this one has learned how to obey his maker. You have not.”

Yes, he had learned, John mused, but it had been a long and sometimes painful process. He shielded his thoughts as best he could.

“Will Hennu come back, Madam?” he asked. 

“You can call me Atrah. As for Hennu, he might come back one day, but not now. You two are wondering why your maker would leave you now, especially because this one is still too reckless for his own good.”

Alexander opened his mouth to protest, but John managed to send a mental warning to him before he got them both killed.

“I was alive when the Mother was still mortal,” Atrah said. “Hennu is my child.”

John stared at her for what seemed ages, but finally she moved and broke the spell. Alexander seemed to be affected as well. Hennu was powerful, but Atrah was…

“Did you come here only to take Hennu away?” John asked.

“I came here for two reasons. One was to send Hennu away---” 

“Why?” Alexander asked. 

John sighed inwardly. As amused as Atrah was by Alexander’s lack of manners, she could change her mind and set him afire. Alexander did not know yet about that power, or the others that vampires acquired with time.

“Can I come out now, Atrah?” a voice asked. 

Atrah’s face softened. “Come here, beloved, before I lose patience with your friend.”

John had recognized the voice, but he was not prepared for the sight of Peggy Schuyler coming from behind a tomb, her curly hair seemingly alive, and her eyes so brilliant that he could not look away until she smiled.

“Hello, John, Alex,” she said. “I have missed you both.” 

“Peggy?” Alexander whispered.

John was too surprised to say a word. He watched mutely as Peggy embraced Alexander, wondering why Hennu had never told him that she was one of them. Peggy had died after John was given the Blood. Has Atrah been in the city then? Had Peggy?

“I took Margaret to the West,” Atrah said, “and no, I have not read your mind, child. Your face says it all. You need to learn to conceal your emotions. The same goes for you,” she told Alexander, who was crying tears of blood.

Peggy gave him a handkerchief and kissed his cheek. “You have John and me, now, Alexander. You are not alone.”

She turned to John and smiled at him. “Come here, my friend. You are part of our little family. Atrah is leaving. We have to take care of ourselves.”

John looked at Atrah briefly before he opened his arms and gathered Peggy close. She was warm with a recent kill, and she was powerful.

“I have missed you too,” John whispered. He said nothing more, because he knew of the pain that Peggy might have endured seeing her children, her family. They were children of the night, a family of blood drinkers, but they would have to endure the passing of time if they wanted to survive.

“Why are you leaving?” Alexander asked.

A flash of impatience darkened Atrah’s blue eyes, but a look from Peggy was enough for her anger to subside. 

“You are on your own now,” Atrah said. “I will never return, neither will Hennu for now. Our paths take us far away from this place. Be prepared, be strong. Cut your ties to the past or you will not survive.

Peggy went to Atrah’s side and kissed her lips. “I will always remember you, my love.”

Atrah smoothed Peggy’s curls. “And I will always love you, Margaret.”

The next moment Atrah was gone, and both Alexander and John were embracing Peggy, who was crying uncontrollably. 

“Atrah would be displeased,” Peggy managed between sobs. 

John gave her his handkerchief. “Do not worry, Peggy. I am certain that she understands.”


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peggy tells Alexander and John why Hennu and Atrah left New York.

Peggy led them to the house that Atrah bought for them when she brought her through. It was a small house in the middle of nowhere, and a mist covered it from view unless you knew where to look. 

It was furnished like mortals’ houses. It had a piano that Atrah and Peggy would play together. Alexander might like to play it now that Atrah was gone. Peggy quickly brushed the red sheen off her eyes and opened the door. The mortal servants had come during the day and cleaned it, knowing that their mistresses were back. Peggy would have to dismiss them before they saw Alexander or John.

_You should kill them, love. They know where you live, and they might speak of us when they return to their villages._

Atrah was right. She would have to kill them both, and find new ones.

“This house is…”

“…wonderful,” Alexander finished John’s sentence. “Hennu had us living in an old abandoned crypt. We had our coffins there.”

“Coffins are not needed if you have a vault that no one can open,” Peggy said, “but we have coffins too. You and John will have to share until we procure a new one.”

“I thought that Atrah planned to bring us here,” John said.

Peggy smiled sadly. “She did, but first she wanted to know if you were worthy companions. I knew you two were strong, but Hennu---”

“Told her to kill me?” 

“Alexander,” John warned.

“After all this time he still believed that I was trouble? Unbelievable!”

“Hennu knew that you both are trouble, but she might have mentioned your obsession with Thomas Jefferson.”

“He knew about the cemetery?” Alexander said.

“Have you been meeting Jefferson at the cemetery before tonight?”

“No, but I might have crossed paths with him in other places…”

“You are impossible!”

“Calm down, you both,” Peggy said. “Atrah and I have been here for a week, and she saw you both roaming the city together and alone. Hennu told her that you were both strong, and that Alexander would learn restraint with time.”

“You met Hennu?” John asked. 

“He was Atrah’s child, and ancient lover. That is how things are between us, vampires. We love each other or hate each other, regardless of the laws of men. Atrah was my lover.”

John and Alexander looked at each other, before turning back to her. Peggy knew, she’d always suspected that they were lovers once, and Atrah had confirmed it. Alexander had stayed away from John after he married Lizzie, but he was never a faithful husband.

“Do you know why they left?” John asked.

“There is trouble in Egypt,” Peggy said. “The Mother of us all, the first one, is moving again. Hennu and Atrah are needed there.”

“But why?”

Peggy looked at Alexander, “Because we are all linked. If she exposes herself to the sun, she will not die, but we will.”


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thomas is worried for James.

**The Capitol**

Thomas sat at his desk, signing the letters he was going to send to Lewis and Clark. They had held their first meeting with the Oto and Missouri Chiefs, and Thomas wanted to know more details. Buying Louisiana had been one of the greatest achievements of his government, but now he needed to take possession of those lands, and that meant negotiating with the Indian chiefs. They were the owners of their lands, and great warriors, but it was necessary to make place for those colonists who wanted to emigrate to the west. There were many ways to achieve an agreement, and to draw Indians out of their ways of life, and eventually from part of their lands. It was a delicate problem, but Thomas was determined to find a solution.

“Excuse me, Mister President. Secretary Madison is here to see you.”

“Let him in, Mister Burwell.”

James entered, looking calm and collected, but as soon as Burwell left, his whole demeanor changed. Thomas kept a calm façade as he regarded his friend.

“Thomas…”

“Yes?”

“Are we not going to speak about what happened last night?”

Thomas sat back in his chair. “We talked about it on the way back here, Jemmy. You were right. It was a hallucination. The fever… I have become obsessed and managed to pull you into my fantasies.”

“Do not insult my intelligence, Thomas. I heard the voice too. There is no such thing as collective hallucinations.”

“Ah, but it can happen, my friend. I once read about how men lost in the desert can see an oasis that is not there--”

“Stop! Just stop trying to deny the obvious. Last night I was too surprised and disturbed to believe any possible explanation for what happened in the cemetery, but now I am rested, and I know what I heard, and we were not in a damned oasis!”

“Calm down, please, and take a seat.”

“No!”

Thomas raised an eyebrow. It did not work, but he had never heard James speaking like this before.

“James, please.”

“Until last night you were sure that Hamilton was a vampire, and that he had attacked you. I was worried sick about you, and so was Patsy. We believed you were getting better, but when you asked me to go to the cemetery, I believed that all my efforts had been in vain.”

“Does Patsy know about me believing that Hamilton is a vampire?”

“No, but she heard you call for him in your sleep.”

Thomas stood. “Well, that’s good at least.”

“Then we heard that voice,” James continued, “and you found that button. I don’t know if Hamilton is indeed a vampire, but that voice was real, as disturbing as that fact is.”

“James, please sit down. I will ask Mister Burwell to have tea brought to us, and we will speak about this.”

James sat down, and Thomas sat back at his desk after speaking with Burwell. A few moments later a maid brought tea and pastries. Thomas had asked Mister Burwell not to disturb him and Secretary Madison for at least an hour.

“James, I know that I have been acting strangely since we heard that voice at the cemetery. Let me finish, please. I know it is not a hallucination, though I hoped to convince you that it was.”

“Why?”

“Because if Hamilton is a vampire, and I know at least of the existence of another one, the voice did not belong to either of them. There is a new vampire in New York, and the same as Hamilton did, this vampire could come to the Capital and attack you. I want you to be safe, James.”

“Thomas, while I appreciate the sentiment, have you forgotten that it is you who was attacked by Hamilton?”

“He will not attack me again. That other vampire forbade it.”

“And that is supposed to make me feel better? Hamilton was never one to do as he was said.”

“Believe me, James. Hamilton obeys this vampire, but I’m not certain if that prohibition includes you. Hamilton was… amnesic at the time. He could simply see you and smell your blood. I have been reading about vampires, so don’t look at me like that.”

James sighed. “Those are old tales…”

“Or maybe old truths, which is why you have to stay away from that cemetery, and maybe have a gun, a sword, or a... a stake to put through his heart…”

“Do you have any of those?”

Thomas looked away. “I have a gun, but Hamilton will not attack me again.”

“Would you defend yourself if he did?”

“I don’t know…”

“Thomas! Whatever Hamilton did to you…”

“It was the other vampire who did something to me, and I forgot for a while, but the feeling of being drained… I will not say more about this.”

Thomas stood up, his hand going to the pocket where he had Hamilton’s button. He could not lie to James, but he was still trying to understand his own mind. This might be an after-effect of whatever the other vampire did to him, or maybe it was the pleasure he craved. He could not tell James about that… 

“Thomas.” James was standing beside him. “Promise me that you will not go to the cemetery again. Promise me that you will stay away from New York, unless it is absolutely necessary for you to go.”

“Jemmy… »

“Promise me! Do you want Patsy to find you dead because a vampire drank your blood? You are her father, Thomas, and you are the President of our nation. You have to stay away from Hamilton and defend yourself if it comes to that.”

James was right. He had to fight this obsession. He could not leave Patsy alone, or the nation in Burr’s hands. Burr was not even at the Capital. He was a fugitive now.

“I promise, James. I will defend myself if Hamilton or another vampire comes for me.”

Or at least try, because Hamilton seemed to be amazingly strong now. Thomas would try, but above all he would protect his daughter and her family, and James.


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes killing is hard, even if you are a vampire.

John and Alexander followed Peggy through the streets of New York, looking for prey. Being young, they had to feed every night. Even Peggy, who was older than them in the Blood, still felt the need. Apparently it would be like that until they were nearly a millennia old. That was a long time, John mused as they approached the docks. Bandits could be found there, and feeding on them was a way to help the city. It was killing, yes, but at least it had meaning.

“Atrah told me that a vampire needs to find some sort of meaning to their kill, but unlike Hennu, she doesn’t always kill the evildoers. Survival was her main reason to kill.”

“And that is why you killed the human servants,” Alexander said. It was not an accusation. He was merely stating the facts. Peggy had told them what she had done, and though John knew it had to be done, he would have preferred that they wiped out their minds.

_“John, they might remember eventually, like Jefferson did.” _

_Alexander had shaken his head. “Thomas is different. He has a brilliant mind, and I think that Hennu didn’t want to break him.” _

_“Which is why in this case we could have erased their memories effectively. None of them seemed to be especially bright.”_

_Peggy had looked at him. “It was kinder to kill them, John.”_

John knew that Peggy was right, but killing had always been difficult for him. It was different for Alexander, who had taken his first victim before remembering who he was. John would never say that Alexander enjoyed the need to kill, but he did it as something that had to be done.

“There,” Peggy said. “You can take those two. I will be back soon. Remember to cover your kill.”

John and Alexander nodded, and swiftly moved toward the two bandits. They were planning to rob a house and rape the women who lived in it, mother and daughter. The only man in the house was away. 

Alexander took the tall, red-haired man, so John approached the other man, a slim dark-haired youth. He had a knife, but John was too fast for him, and soon he had sunk his fangs in the man’s neck.

“Vampire!” the man said, but John held him tight and started to drink slowly, savoring the taste of his beer-laced blood. As John drank, the man started to think of better times when he had been a child who helped his father at work. It was painful to see the child’s face, the hope in his eyes…

“Stop!”

It was Alexander. 

John looked at him in confusion. 

“Drink from me, Jacky,” Alexander said.

“We have to cover our kill…”

_That boy… What happened to him?_

“Later,” Alexander said. He bared his neck and made a cut. John latched onto the wound, drinking so fast at first that Alexander swooned in his arms. John slowed down, and then he felt Alexander’s fangs in his neck. The vampire kiss, their minds open, Alexander’s warmth sweeping away the pain. There was more though, and John could see another red-haired man in Alexander’s mind, but for now he needed the comfort of his friend’s vampire embrace. There would be time to speak about Jefferson.


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Where are Atrah and Hennu?

**Egypt**

Atrah stood before the Mother,looking at her, horrified with the knowledge that she did not move anymore. The Vault where she was kept was secure, and their Guardians strong enough to keep her comfortable and safe. It was amazing to know that the Mother had asked a Roman vampire, a child if compared to her and Hennu, to take tale the life of the Elder who used to take care of her and the Father. He had died when the Elder left them both in the Sun, turned to dust. She had survived, but many had died. Did she care for them?

It was time to leave the Vault. Their caretaker would know that someone had broken in, or maybe he would believe that she had moved. After all, she did sometimes, according to Hennu. She knew that Atrah was here, and she had allowed her to stay for a while. 

Once outside, Atrah headed to the castle she had in Egypt, where Hennu would be waiting for her. It was time to take care of other things, to find those who had been part of the rebel vampire army. They needed to speak of what to do next, and the risk that those who would drink the Mother’s blood posed to them all. 

Hopefully Margaret would keep those two in check. The first one still had problems with the kill, and the second one was obsessed with the president of his nation. Margaret… Peggy was strong enough to help John and control Alexander…

She would have to be.

Alexander was a problem, Atrah told Hennu so, but killing him would have made Margaret sad, and send John into a spiral of pain that would destroy him. Atrah would have to let nature take its course. What was bound to happen could not be stopped for long.

Atrah took to the air, her mind still focused on the children they had left behind. It was seldom like that. Makers stayed with their fledglings until they were strong enough to fend for themselves. On the other side, both Atrah and Hennu were part of the First Brood, and that meant their children were powerful.

Too much power was a problem.

Atrah wished she had brought Margaret with her, but it would have been risky for her beloved. Hennu was strong enough, which is why she had called for his help.

And there he was, standing alone in the courtyard, listening to the sounds of the night. Egypt was their birthplace after all, and the song of the night would always be special for them.

Atrah landed in the courtyard silently, but Hennu had already seen her. He opened his arms and she went into his embrace. She had loved Hennu as a mortal woman, and she loved him still, but vampires never stayed together for too long. They needed to recreate themselves to withstand the passage of time.


	16. Chapter 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alexander and Peggy worry for John.

**Vampires' House**

Alexander woke up in his coffin, feeling the pull of the night in his veins. It was painful to feel this hunger, and it was worse to know that he couldn’t have the one he yearned for. Jefferson, his former political rival, the one man he had learned to admire and despise at the same time. After drinking from him, Alexander knew Thomas Jefferson in another way. He knew of the man’s determination to do what he believed was good for his country, he knew of his pain when Martha died, and of his shame when his loneliness and power over Sally Hemings led him to do the unthinkable. Jefferson was not the first Southerner to take a young slave as a concubine, but he felt shame and desire in equal measure, and it tormented him. The affection that Jefferson felt for Sally didn’t make up for what he had done to her. How could he live with that feeling tearing him apart?

There was John too, who had fallen into a dangerous state after killing that man. Why had this affected him so much? John was older in the Blood than Alexander, and he had been hunting all those years with Hennu…

Maybe that was the problem! Maybe Hennu had somehow helped John to overcome his natural compassion for humans!

Alexander felt pity for them too, but he was new and for now the thirst for blood was stronger than anything else. Peggy seemed to be all right too. Maybe each vampire dealt with taking a life in a different way. Alexander wished Hennu were here so he could help John regain his balance. 

“Alex?” 

It was Peggy. 

Alexander opened his coffin from inside and sat up. “I know I’m always the last to wake up, but this time I was thinking---”

“John is still in his coffin.”

“What?”

They had bought another coffin for Alex two nights ago, and John was using the one where they used to sleep together. Alexander came out of his own coffin and looked at John’s. It was closed, and he could hear his friend’s heartbeat inside it.

“What’s the matter with him? John! Wake up! John!”

“Calm down, Alex. Let me try to wake him up by touching his mind. I am stronger than you, so let me.”

Alexander nodded, though he still believed that he would be able to wake John up too, or at least help. 

Peggy closed his eyes and stayed like that for a moment before she opened them and looked at Alexander. 

“He refuses to come out. We will have to break his coffin.”

“No! Don’t break my coffin!”

A moment later John was sitting up and glaring at them both. “I am not a child. If I want to sleep all night, you two have no right to force me to leave the house.”

“Oh, but we have the right to keep you safe, and you need to feed,” Alexander said, “so come out of that coffin and let’s hunt.”

“I’m not hungry.”

Alexander and Peggy exchanged a worried look. 

“You should be,” Peggy said. 

“Jacky, let us help you…”

John looked away. “Nobody can…”

“Did Hennu…?”

John looked at him. “Hennu could not read my mind, but he never allowed me to swallow the death. I’ll be all right. I just need time to adjust…”

Alexander looked at John, his eyes bright, his skin almost translucent. It worried him. What if John died?

“We will hunt and share with you. Would that be all right?” Peggy asked.

“It’s not fair, and I almost drained Alexander---”

“I drank from you too!”

“I will hunt more than my fill,” Peggy said, “and you will drink from me and then from Alexander.”

John nodded, hugging his knees. “Thank you.”

“Now get out of that coffin,” Alexander said. “You will come with us.”

John opened his mouth to protest, but finally nodded. They changed clothes and prepared to go into the night. It was time to hunt.


	17. Chapter 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thomas receives a visit.

**The Capitol**

Thomas was writing a letter to Lafayette, hoping to find his friend well. After being released from prison, Lafayette had retired, and he had established himself at his house in La Grange, with Adrienne, and their daughters and son. Georges Washington de Lafayette had entered a military career, but Napoleon’s distrust of his father was making it difficult for him to be promoted to a higher post. When Thomas bought Louisiana, he asked Lafayette if he was interested in being governor of the new lands, but Gilbert had declined. His wife’s health and his need to do whatever possible for his country were the reasons for his decision. 

Maybe it was better for Lafayette to stay away from America now that vampires were prowling around. Even if Hamilton and he had been friends and war comrades, Lafayette could still be in danger. If Hamilton decided to taste Lafayette’s blood it might be the end of the Frenchman.

Thomas stood and looked out the window, wondering if Hamilton was close. He had promised James not to look for trouble, and he had stayed away from New York, but Hamilton came once so…

“So, you are thinking about me,” a silky, entrancing voice said behind him.

Thomas turned around. “How did you…?”

Hamilton smiled, not showing his fangs, and Thomas could not help but think of an angel, with wild red curls and brilliant blue eyes that held Thomas in thrall.

“You should know that I can enter here at will, Jefferson.”

“What about that other vampire? The blond one?”

Hamilton looked away for a moment. “He is gone, but I promise I will not kill you, Thomas. I only want to speak with you.”

Thomas shook himself out of the spell that Hamilton’s presence… Was it a spell? Thomas knew that he should be afraid, or at least reach for his gun, but he was curious.

“I’d take you down before you had time to reach for your gun.”

“Are you reading my mind?”

Hamilton smirked, which made Thomas furious. It made him feel vulnerable, exposed, and he did not like the feeling. 

Hamilton sat on one of Thomas’ armchairs, and looked at him, amusement dancing in his eyes. “Sit down, Thomas. Talk to me. We were rivals when I was alive, but now I’m… undead.”

Thomas frowned, but he sat down in front of Hamilton. “What do you want to speak about?”

“Well, let’s see… You are trying to dismantle my financial system. I don’t like it.”

“What do you care now, Hamilton? Are you going to try to ruin America now that you are, as you say, undead?”

“You should call me Alexander.”

“What?”

“You will not be able to dismantle my financial system. You have done enough harm already, but even you must realize that our country needs credit! You have bought lands and doubled the size of the Union. You could---”

Thomas stood. “I’m not going to speculate with those lands!”

Alexander made a steeple with his hands. “Some of them would render high revenues for your government, and that would allow you to help those who really need it.”

“Or I could sell those lands at low prices to those who really need them!”

Hamilton stood. “It was only a suggestion, Thomas. I’m aware that I’m no longer part of this world. I’m out of time.”

There was sadness in Hamilton’s voice. 

“You are still here, and being annoying as always,” Thomas said.

Hamilton smiled, eyes still sad, though.

“Are you… are you alone, Alexander?”

“No, John and Peggy are with me.”

“WHAT?”

“Oh, God! They will kill me if they know I told you. Not literally kill me, but you know what I mean. That was a secret. Thomas, you have to forget I mentioned them---”

Thomas backed away. “Are you going to erase my mind?”

“No, I cannot do it, but Peggy might be able to… No, she is powerful, but she is still young. What’s wrong?”

Thomas shook his head, unable to utter a word, his body trembling. Peggy Schuyler was a vampire? Laurens too? What would Lafayette… This could not be happening!

“Thomas, look at me.”

There were hands holding his arms, cold, strong hands. Thomas realized that he could not move away.

“Look at me, Thomas. Breathe.”

Thomas tried to breathe, but it was increasingly difficult to draw air into his lungs. Three vampires in New York, and they would need to feed, and…

Suddenly Thomas felt lips on his own, and opened his mouth to Alexander, holding to him as if to a lifeline. Then it happened… A liquid like fire, blood that tasted of light and darkness… 

He wanted more!

“No,” Alexander said, forcing him away. “I am sorry, Thomas. I should never have done this.”

“Alexander…”

“I’m sorry!” Alexander said once again, and then he was gone.

Thomas fell back on one of the armchairs, still trying to control his breath. There was something new, though. Hamilton… Alexander’s blood. He would never be able to forget that taste, and the way the world around him seemed to have a new inner light.


	18. Chapter 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John cannot deal with Alexander's behavior any longer.

**New York**

John followed Peggy in their search for Alexander. Their friend had slipped away while they were watching a night celebration, mingling with humans and pretending to be part of their society. It was easy to do so; any vampire could entrance humans, and provided they moved carefully to avoid bruising them, and hid their sharp, glass-like nails, they could speak and dance with them. It was a dangerous move to do it in New York, where someone could recognize them, but John had cut his hair short, and so had Peggy, who in addition was dressed like a man. Alexander had simply pulled his hair in a tight ponytail, refusing to cut his long hair, even if they all knew it would grow up again during the day.

That should have been their first warning. Obviously Alexander was planning some mischief and he did not want to startle his family – who might believe him a ghost – or Jefferson, by showing up with short hair. Alexander had been so excited with their adventure that John and Peggy had relaxed and stopped keeping a close eye on him.

And now he was lost, and probably watching his family from afar. John only hoped that Alexander didn’t try to see Angie. The poor girl had lost her mind when Philip died, but she was calmer now. Seeing her father alive, or… undead, might send her into a new crisis.

“I can’t sense him anywhere,” Peggy said. “He is not in New York.”

“Are you certain?”

Peggy sighed. “Not as certain as Atrah would be, but I can’t sense him anywhere near La Grange.”

John paled. “Do you think he went after Jefferson?”

“Maybe…”

“Damn it!”

"I will go to the Capitol. You stay here, John. Maybe he is hidden somewhere, or near my sister Angelica’s house.”

“He would?”

Of course he would…

Peggy raised her hands. “I don’t know! His mind is impenetrable to me, at least without forcing him to let me see his thoughts. Hennu taught you both well.”

“I wish he hadn’t.”

_Why, Alex? Why must you become obsessed with Jefferson now that we can be together? Why am I not enough?_

Peggy placed a hand on John’s shoulder. “I know this is difficult for you, John. That is why it will be better that I look for him.”

John sighed and nodded, swallowing the pain. He understood why Alexander had married Eliza. John himself had married Martha, but they were free now, and still Alexander didn’t want him! 

_Alexander loved Eliza. Who am I trying to fool?_

“John…”

“Go on, I’ll be fine.”

Peggy shook her head and pulled him close to share a kiss. They could not share blood in other way, being so close to the mortals. She bit her tongue and gave him a taste of her own blood. 

_I love you, John, and Alexander loves you._

“I would think you would wait for me. Now I know why you let me go so easily!”

“Alexander!”

Peggy grabbed his arm. “What’s wrong? Where have you been?”

Only then did John realize how pale Alexander was, more than it was normal for them to be. Alexander shook his head, but he was shaking.

“What happened to you, Alex?” John asked when Peggy let him go. 

“I visited Jefferson…”

John turned around and left as fast as he could, but he stopped when he heard Alexander’s next words: “I shared a few drops of my blood with him.”

“What?” Peggy exclaimed. “Are you out of your mind?”

John could not hear more. Alexander had given Jefferson his blood! That could only mean that he was going to bring Jefferson through, or worse, make a slave out of him. 

_John!_

_Jacky!_

John heard them even if they were not screaming, but he simply used all his vampiric speed and rushed forward. He needed to hide from them and think. What use was this life if Alexander only wanted Jefferson? Peggy loved John, but she would go with Atrah if she came back.

Eternal life alone was not worth it…


	19. Chapter 19

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hennu comes back, and there are consequences...

Alexander rushed after John, along with Peggy, feeling sick with guilt. Why had he given Jefferson his blood, and why had he told John and Peggy? Why was he always doing these things? Hennu was right, had always been right. Alexander was not made for this life.

_No, that’s not it. I hurt John like I hurt Eliza, and I am hurting Thomas just by visiting him…_

“Stop that right now, Alexander! This is not the moment, and no, I didn’t read your mind. You are projecting your thoughts for anyone who can read them. Think of John!”

“I’m sorry…”

They were outside the city already, and there was no sign of John. How had he run so fast? 

_John! Jacky, please!_

Peggy stopped running.

“Atrah?”

“What?”

“They are here… Hennu has John, and Atrah is with him!” 

Soon enough both Hennu and Atrah emerged from the shadows, along with John, who was unconscious in her arms. Hennu looked furious. Atrah looked sad. 

“No!” Peggy said. “You cannot destroy Alexander! Atrah, please…” 

“He is not my child, dearest.” 

Alexander looked at Hennu, and knew in that moment that his fate was sealed. He had hurt John, and he had given his blood to Jefferson, endangering the President’s life. He had also revealed himself to a mortal, risking their little coven’s survival. 

“Do it,” Alexander said. “Just keep John safe.” 

Peggy stood between Hennu and Alexander. “NO!” 

“It’s all right, Peggy. I should be dead. I miss my family but I cannot be with them anymore… And I cannot promise to stay away from Thomas.” 

Atrah rested John on a patch of grass and grabbed Peggy’s hand. “Come with me, my love. You know there is no other way.” 

Peggy turned to her maker. “Atrah, please, I will keep Alexander in check. I know he is reckless, but you cannot expect me to accept this! He’s already died once.” She turned to Hennu. “Please, spare him, Hennu. John loves him.” 

“And that is why John had decided to face the sun,” Hennu said. 

Alexander froze. “What?” 

“Then what will you think he will do if you kill Alexander?” 

“Take her away, Atrah,” Hennu said. 

“NO!” 

Atrah embraced Peggy and dragged her away as if she were a small child. Peggy fought with all her strength, blood tears running down her pale cheeks. Alexander closed his eyes, unable to look at her. He had hurt Peggy too. He deserved to die… 

“What will happen to John?” 

“I will keep him safe.” 

“What will you tell him?” 

“That you went to ground.” 

That would hurt John too, but at least he would not be alone. Surely Atrah would make Peggy understand that she could not tell John that Hennu had killed him. Alexander looked at John for a last time, and then he turned back to Hennu. 

“I am ready.” 

Hennu looked at Alexander for a moment, something akin to compassion in his eyes, but the next moment his expression changed and Alexander felt his maker’s power reach him. Fire, the one thing that could ignite his blood and take this life away… Alexander screamed, but it ended fast, and then there was nothing but darkness.


	20. Chapter 20

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thomas receives an unexpected visitor.

**The Capitol**

It had been a month since the last time that Alexander came to visit him, and though Thomas was relieved that the vampire had stayed away, he missed the man. The memory of the Blood, and its eerie taste had haunted him for a full week, but it was fading already. Maybe it was for the best, Thomas mused. He could see how Alexander could have easily controlled him, not only physically. That would have been a dangerous thing.

Thomas had been dreaming of Alexander, though. Not of the vampire, but of the young man who defied him in the cabinet, all passion and cunning, and malice. Thomas had helped Alexander to get his bill passed, but the concentration of power that came next had made him regret his decision. Hamilton’s financial program was so entrenched into the workings of the government, that it was no longer possible to dismantle it. And maybe, just maybe that was a good thing.

_He was a genius, if a misguided one._

Thomas closed his book, and left the library, heading to his bedroom in the president’s house. A candle was ready, and his bedsheets had been changed by the servants. One of his slaves had placed his night clothes in an armchair. Thomas sat down on the bed, and the next moment the room turned cold. 

“Alexander?”

There was no answer, but a wind blew the candle off, and a presence came close to him. Thomas did not dare to move.

“I am dead,” Alexander said.

“What…?”

There was another long silence, and when Thomas was about to extend a hand to see if Alexander was indeed there, he spoke again.

“Hennu killed me, but I am earthbound… I have tried to leave this place, to find my way to the afterlife, to Philip and my mother…”

Thomas took a deep breath, fighting the rise of panic, determined not to be overwhelmed by the vampire’s tricks, by Alexander’s tricks.

“I’m no vampire,” Alexander said, and slowly Jefferson could see a shadow standing before him, no scent, no warmth, but it was definitely Hamilton. 

“How can this be?”

“I don’t know… I have been dead for nearly four weeks, and it’s taken me all this time to understand that I am still here… I am a ghost now, and I cannot leave your side.”

Thomas fought the urge to reach out to the shadow that was Alexander, and tried to think rationally. He did not believe in ghosts, but he had never believed in vampires, and yet Alexander had been one, and given him…

“My blood, and that was a dangerous thing to do. John got angry at me, and Peggy--- But the worst was when Hennu and Atrah came. They were merciless, but I deserved to die. I should never have given you my blood. I got scared, you see? You were not breathing and…”

“Is Hennu the vampire who took you away the first time?”

Alexander’s shadow sat beside Thomas. It was eerie how the mattress did not sink with his weight.

_I must be dreaming._

“You are not dreaming. I am here.”

“Are you reading my mind?”

“Yes…”

“Well, stop it.”

“I am sorry…”

Hamilton sounded tired. Thomas did reach out this time, and he felt something cold around his hand. He withdrew it.

“I am sorry too. Did Hennu kill you because you gave me your blood?”

“Yes… Thomas… I cannot hold…”

And suddenly Thomas was alone, and the ghost of Alexander was no longer there. Thomas still wondered if he’d had a dream, but at the same time hoped to see Hamilton again.


	21. Chapter 21

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peggy is Atrah's prisoner.

Peggy woke up as soon as the sun set, but she did not move from the bed. Atrah had locked her in this cell since Hennu killed Alexander, and only came when it was time to hunt. During the first nights, Atrah had tried to reason with Peggy, to justify Hennu’s horrible crime. Peggy had refused to hear her, had rejected Atrah’s blood, knowing well that she would hurt her maker and lover. 

_“You knew this could happen,” Atrah had said._

_“I knew, but I believed that you would stop Hennu. You say you love me, Atrah, yet you allowed him to kill a dear friend and take the other away. Where is John now?”_

_“I don’t know. John believes that Alexander has gone to ground.”_

_“John loved Alexander!”_

_“He was all right until Hennu brought Alexander through. John will forgive him in time.”_

_“Have you no feelings? Are you so far removed from human emotions that you cannot understand?”_

_“I love you, Margaret.”_

_“Like a pet, nothing else.”_

_“You do not understand,” Atrah had said, and left her there._

“I wish I was dead,” Peggy said, blood tears running on her cheeks. “I wish I had died and never fallen in love with Atrah…”

The lock opened, and Peggy quickly brushed her tears away with one of the red handkerchiefs Atrah had given her as a gift. She let it go as soon as her maker came into the cell. Atrah looked pained, and Peggy fought the urge to ask the reason. They were no longer lovers. Atrah was her jailer now. 

“Do you wish to come with me to New York?”

“What for?”

Atrah sat on the edge on Peggy’s bed. “To feed?”

Peggy hugged her knees. “I’m not hungry.”

“But you are, beloved. I can see it in your eyes, in the pallor of your skin. I cannot bear to see you in such pain.”

Peggy lifted her chin. “There is nothing you can do to fix that, Atrah.”

Atrah closed her eyes briefly. “I have no wish to force feed you, Margaret, but I will do it if needed.” 

“Then do it. I’m not strong enough to oppose you.”

“Is your love gone?” Atrah asked. 

"No, and that makes it worse. How can I still love someone like you, who loves me not? How can I love you if Alexander is dead? You could have stopped Hennu. He is your child. You have the strength.”

“I could not interfere.”

“You would not interfere?”

“Enough of this,” Atrah said, and she pulled Peggy close. “Take from me.”

“You would force me?”

Atrah smoothed Peggy’s hair lovingly, and then made a gash on the purple vein under her neck. Before Peggy could think, her body moved forward and she sank her fangs in her maker’s flesh, taking the blood she so needed. 

It seemed to go on forever, and Peggy’s mind was filled with happier times when she and Atrah had traveled together, locked together in the vampire kiss, moving under starred skies and drinking the warm blood of humans. Atrah had kept Peggy safe, and sane, unaware of the necessary separation from her family until it was too late.

_“You cannot see them again, beloved,” Atrah had said. “It will hurt you. Let us stay here in Greece until your human lifetime is over. You will be stronger after that.”_

_“I want to see my son! He needs me!”_

_“He thinks you are dead, Margaret. You cannot go to him now.”_

Peggy had cried and promised to look at him from afar, but they had only returned to the Union a year before Alexander died.

Peggy moved away from Atrah. “You tricked me!”

“And I will do it again until you agree to hunt with me again. Rest now, beloved. I must go to New York.”

Peggy looked away, feeling Atrah’s powerful blood coursing through her body, and hating herself for it. 

_I have to leave this place! I cannot stand this anymore… I don’t want Atrah to trick me again!_

Yet drinking her maker’s blood might make her stronger, and in time she could escape her prison. Peggy closed her eyes and allowed herself to fall back on the bed. She had some thinking to do. One way of the other she was going to escape.


	22. Chapter 22

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lafayette remembers John and Alexander.  
Hennu realizes that he cannot save John from his grief.
> 
> This is where I begin to change the old story.

**La Grange-Bléneau Castle, France**

Gilbert was sitting alone outside the house, thinking of the current situation in France, and of Thomas Jefferson’s offer. Napoleon had been crowned… No, he had crowned himself Emperor of France, and democracy seemed to be mortally wounded. It would not die, not while Gilbert had the strength to do something about it. He was aware that refusing the honors Napoleon had tried to confer to him had irritated the then Consul, but he was certain that the Emperor would not harm him or his family. 

Just being in an early retirement was enough for now. 

Gilbert was worried for Adrienne’s health. She had been so kind to share his prison, but she had never been strong enough to endure its conditions. At least Anastasie and Virginie had stayed in good health, and Georges had been safe in America. 

Thomas Jefferson had offered Gilbert the post of governor of the new lands he had purchased, and it was a tempting offer. Nevertheless, Gilbert could not accept it, for his country, for Adrienne, and for his children and granddaughters. They had a life in France now. Five years old Célestine, and one-year old Nathalie, and the ones to come soon and later. Gilbert wanted to make the world safe for them, the same as his friends in America had done for their children. 

His mind turned to Alexander, who had died months ago, shot by Aaron Burr in a senseless duel. His friend, le petit lion, so smart and so reckless… John had been reckless too, even more than Alexander. Gilbert closed his eyes and remembered the last time he had lain with John before returning to France. His John, his Jacky, so determined to prove his love for his country even if that meant playing target to the enemy. It had hurt so much to hear about his early death, and now Alexander was dead too. Gilbert had loved them both, but John had marked his heart forever. 

**New York**

Hennu watched John, wondering if there was a way to save him from his grief. Since John had learned about Alexander “supposedly going to ground”, he had been inconsolable. At first, John had begged Hennu to help him to dig Alexander up. 

_No, my child, Hennu had said. When a vampire goes to ground it is because he needs the rest._

_But Alexander is too young! Hennu, what if he never rises again?_

_Then it was his fate._

_This is my fault! I escaped, and he was calling for me. I should have been there for him…_

_There was nothing you could have done, my child._

John had believed him, but Hennu could see the signs in his beloved child. John was dreaming the sad dreams that preceded a vampire’s descent into darkness. Atrah had told Hennu so. When one so young went to ground, he might never rise again. Hennu had never believed that this could happen to John or Peggy. Only Alexander had been flawed since the beginning. 

Hennu sighed as he approached John. His child was sitting on his coffin, eyes vacant, hunger clear in the pallor of his skin. John would go to ground, but Hennu would make sure that he rose up one day. 

“Come with me,” Hennu said and picked John in his arms. He opened a gash in his neck and his powerful blood appeared to have an effect in his child. John blinked and latched his mouth on the wound, and drank his fill, but once he was done, he closed his eyes, and fell into a troubled sleep. Hennu kissed his forehead and rested John in his own coffin. Once the night came again, he would lead John to a safe place where he could rest until his soul was healed.


	23. Chapter 23

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alexander can speak with Thomas again.
> 
> My vampires here are based on Anne Rice's universe, where some of them can become ghosts after they die. Other ghosts come from other places. Anyway, this is why Alexander is now a ghost.

**The Capitol**

It had taken Alexander months to gather the strength to be able to communicate with Thomas again. He had tried to leave the Capitol as soon as he felt stronger and go to his own house, but something had pulled Alexander back as if there was an invisible line that connected him to the Capitol and its current occupant. 

His strength gone again, Alexander had lingered as a mere shadow, watching Thomas sleep, eat, talk to Madison… He felt like a stalker, but maybe that was what ghosts did. 

Alexander didn’t want to do that forever, though. He wanted to speak with Thomas, to learn about his plans for Louisiana, to advise him on financial matters. If he could not go to heaven or hell, at least he wanted to do something with this “afterlife” of sorts.

So he had taken the shape of his old body once again, and he was standing in Thomas’ bedroom, waiting for him to wake up. He was a heavy sleeper, unless he was sick or stressed. Alexander had learned a lot about his former enemy during these months.

If there was one thing that Alexander did not understand was the man’s morning routine. Why place his feet in cold water as soon as he woke up? It made Alexander shiver just to watch him do it. Thomas himself shivered, so why would he insist on doing such a stupid thing? Maybe Alexander could stop it?

He tried to move the feet lavatory with his hands, but he was not solid enough to do it. He blew over the water, and it just moved gently. Alexander sighed and sat on Thomas’ bed, and noted that the mattress sank ever so slightly. 

This was new!

“Jefferson!”

No response. 

“Thomas!”

Thomas stirred and turned around, murmuring something in his sleep. Alexander moved to the other side of the bed and blew on Thomas’ nose. The man groaned and swatted Alexander’s face. Thomas’ eyes flew open.

“WHO…?”

“Hush, it’s me. You don’t want to alert your… servants.”

Thomas was looking at him, wide eyed. “A-Alexander?”

Alexander smiled. “Good morning, Mister President.”

Thomas moved back and sat up on his bed. “I thought you were gone…”

“No, I never left. I was just too weak to speak to you.”

Thomas started to nod, but he stopped. “I touched you!”

“I am as surprised as you are. Can you lower your voice, Thomas? I am here, I’m a ghost, and you can touch me. You don’t need your servants to think that you are speaking out loud to yourself.”

Thomas took a deep breath. “All right. Let me get dressed and we can speak about your… reappearance.” Thomas slid his feet to the floor and placed his feet into the cold water. 

“Why would you do that?”

“It’s good for my health.”

“I don’t think so!”

“How would you know? You never learned to take care of yourself, and then got yourself killed by Burr!”

“He challenged me to a duel!”

“You could have defended yourself.”

Alexander froze and turned his back on Thomas. He didn’t want to think about that now. He had given away his shot, expecting Burr to kill him. Why had he done that? He had abandoned Betsey and their children. Maybe this was his punishment for it, to be unable to get anywhere near his family?

“Alexander…”

“Burr challenged me because I supported you over him. There! Be happy. I died because I supported you, and now I can’t stop you from wrecking our country!”

There was a long silence. “I am sorry about that. I might have told Burr to thank you for your endorsement.”

Alexander whirled around, and almost lost his shape. “You did what?”

“The man is insufferable, and you know it. Listen, I never thought he would challenge you to a duel, and truth be told you might have done other things to anger him.”

“Burr was my friend, but he had no principles. You have them, even if you know nothing about our financial system.”

“I heard you shot at the sky.”

“I did. I don’t want to speak about that.”

Thomas nodded. “Why are you here, Alexander?”

“I don’t know. Might be a punishment for letting my son die in that duel, for cheating on Betsey, for letting myself…?” 

“Be killed?”

“I said I don’t want to speak about that.”

“As you wish. Can you go somewhere else while I dress myself, please?”

Alexander would have blushed if he still had a body.

Thomas did blush. “Leave me alone now!”

Alexander nodded and started to let go of his ghost body. “Sorry…”

“Meet me at my office, will you?” Thomas said. “Don’t… don’t disappear again.”

“I won’t.”

Alexander let go of the last of his shape and moved through the building until he reached Thomas’ office. He took shape once again and sat in an armchair. He would wait for Thomas, and speak to him, and maybe he would finally understand why he was unable to leave his former political enemy’s side.


	24. Chapter 24

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peggy meets Thomas Jefferson and James Madison.

**New York**

Peggy moved quickly through the city her mind focused on feeding as fast as she could. She had bid her time, and pretended to accept the new state of things. Her love for Atrah was still there, buried under a cloak of hatred and pain. Peggy would never forgive Atrah for allowing Hennu to kill Alexander, but she understood her maker’s reasons. 

Atrah was older than Hennu and came from a time when life and death were seen as part of the natural cycle of existence, and where the safety of the tribe was essential. Alexander had put at risk their small coven, and that was why Hennu had killed him. So Peggy understood, but she had been born on another time when friends and family were more important than clans or covens.

Being her maker Atrah could not read Peggy’s thoughts, which was a small blessing. Atrah might suspect that things between them would never be the same again, but she had given Peggy her freedom back. They lived in the same house, but they didn’t share the vampire kiss anymore. 

It was painful for Peggy too.

Suddenly she stopped, feeling two mortals approaching. Her nostrils flared with the scent of their blood, but she froze when she saw who they were. She could not feed on Thomas Jefferson or James Madison!

“Are you feeling unwell, Jemmy?”

“A bit… I…”

James Madison stopped walking, and stood there, his body rigid, his eyes open but unseeing. Thomas Jefferson held him up, a hand slowly rubbing James’ back. 

Epilepsy, that was it, Peggy realized. It was a mild case, as James was only trembling slightly, not convulsing… Thomas was very worried, and he was thinking that it never lasted for long. The attack was not stopping, though, and without thinking Peggy moved closer.

Thomas saw her. “Mrs. Van Rensselaer?”

He knew what Peggy was, of course. James Madison also knew about vampires, but Thomas was wary of her.

“I will not hurt you,” Peggy said. “Can I help?”

James Madison’s eyes rolled back, and he fell to his knees, Thomas still holding him. Peggy crouched beside them. 

“It has never been this bad. Can you… help him?”

“You mean…?”

“Yes. I know it is dangerous for you… I apologize Mrs. Van Rensselaer. I shouldn’t have asked. Hennu might kill you.”

Atrah could, Peggy mused.

“Hennu is not here,” she said. “Lay him on his back, and try to open his mouth.”

Thomas tried, but James' jaw was rigid. Penny bit her wrist anyway, and let a few drops fall on his lips. James’ lips opened, and he swallowed the blood. 

“That’s enough,” Peggy said. Thomas’ was looking at her already healing wrist, eyes wide, hunger in his eyes. Of course, he had tasted…

“How do you know that Hennu killed Alexander?” 

“He told me.”

Peggy did not wait for him to explain, and got the answer from his mind. 

“Alexander is a ghost?”

Thomas nodded. “James doesn’t know. You read my mind.”

Peggy was still trying to process the information, but Thomas’ last words made her react. “Yes, I apologize, Mister President.”

“Alexander does the same,” Thomas said, almost fondly. 

“Alexander what? Mrs. Van Rensselaer?”

Peggy stood, while Thomas tried to calm James down. “We are safe, Jemmy. She will not hurt us. She actually helped…”

James licked his lips, and looked at Peggy, alarmed. “I don’t feel sick… I feel better.”

“Thomas was sick because Alexander drank from him,” Peggy said. “There is no need to worry, Speaker Madison. You will not turn into a vampire.”

James nodded, and stood with Thomas’ help. “T-Thank you for your help, Mrs. Van Rensselaer.”

“Peggy, call me Peggy.”

“Thank you, Peggy. Please, call me James.”

Peggy saw herself through James Madison’s eyes. Vampires were beautiful creatures, and James’ senses were enhanced by the blood. Peggy wanted to take him and drink his blood.

“I need to go now,” Peggy said. “Rest, and be careful, you both,” she added, looking at Thomas. She wanted to go to the Capitol and look for Alexander, but she didn’t want Atrah to know that he was still in this world. Now she needed to feed, plenty, and forget James Madison’s eyes.

  



	25. Chapter 25

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John makes a visit to Lafayette. The year is 1817.

**La Grange-Bléneau Castle, France, 1817**

Lafayette stood alone in his bedroom, unaware that John had been was watching him for a while. He looked lost. Not even when his wife died did Lafayette lose his focus. He should be glad that Napoleon was gone, exiled to Sainte-Hélène. Louis XVIII was the King once again. Times had changed so fast, and Lafayette had changed too, unlike John who still looked like the twenty-seven years old man who died at the Combahee River. Vampires were vulnerable to the passage of time, Hennu had taught him. They stayed the same while everything around them changed.

_Only when you have lived a full lifetime will you understand, my child. Only then will you be safe and strong enough to withstand the passage of time._

John was nearly sixty-three years old in mortal years, but only thirty-five years had passed since Hennu brought him through. Ten of those years he had been under the ground, in Egypt, where Hennu had taken him so he slept in a safe place. Now he was awake again, and he had come to see his former lover. Lafayettte was sixty years old, yet he still looked strong and in good health. 

And beautiful, as beautiful to John as he had been the day they met, and more so now that he was full of life while John was no longer among the living. 

“Jacky…”

John froze. He was aware that Lafayette remembered him. Though he had stayed away, he had caught glimpses of his thoughts here and there. Lafayette had loved him, and remembered him, but John could feel now that that love had never died.

It was tempting to show himself to Lafayette. Hennu was away, and he had stopped keeping an eye on John long ago. This might be John’s only chance to speak to his beloved. Even if Hennu returned, he would never kill Lafayette, though he might punish John as he had probably done with Alexander. Why would a newborn vampire go to ground so fast, otherwise?

Had Alex risen from ground already? 

Lafayette sighed and moved toward the window, shaking John out of his thoughts. He slowly moved out of the shadows. 

“Laf?”

Lafayette whirled around. “J-Jacky?”

“Salut, mon amour.”

Lafayette gasped, and turned pale as a ghost. “Am I going mad? Is this a fevered dream? You are dead!”

John looked into Lafayette’s eyes, enthralling him with his vampiric powers. He could not allow Lafayette to call for help, or worse, go mad. He had to do this carefully.

“I am dead, but you must not be afraid, mon amour,” he said if French. “I am the same John you knew, Laf, and I love you.”

Lafayette’s eyes glazed over, something like hope rising inside him. John took his hands and guided him to sit on his bed. John wanted to kiss him, to take his blood, but he would never abuse his power more than he had done already. 

_All I want is to calm him down…_

He crouched before Lafayette, still holding his hands. “Wake up, mon amour,” he said softly, “and stay calm.”

Lafayette blinked slowly, as if waking up from a dream. John let go of his hands, but remained crouched before him. Finally, Lafayette’s eyes cleared up and he looked at John as if seeing him for the first time. 

“Mon Dieu, Jacky! C’est vraiment toi!” (It is really you)

“Oui, c’est moi. Vous ne rêvez pas.” (You are not dreaming)

Lafayette moved his hand and touched John’s cheek. He had hunted already, and his skin was warm.

“How is this possible?”

“I am a creature of darkness and legends.”

“What do you mean?”

“I am a vampire, Laf.”

Lafayette moved his hand away very slowly, his eyes never leaving John’s. He was obviously struggling to stay seated and not run away as his instincts demanded. John stayed crouched, trying to look non-menacing. Lafayette took a deep breath, and finally spoke. 

“I know that you would never hurt me, Jacky.”

John sighed in relief, and slowly he stood, giving Lafayette space to do the same. They stood in front of the other for a moment, and then Gilbert slowly pulled John closer. 

Thirst rose in John. “Gilbert… Laf…”

“Thomas told me about Alexander,” Lafayette said. “I did not believe him at first, but then I looked for books and ancient lore. You thirst, I know. Are you able to take from me without killing me?”

John shuddered and moved away from Lafayette. “Not tonight…”

“Then we will just talk,” Lafayette said. “I love you, Jacky, and I would die for you, but I have a family and I love them too.”

“I have fed,” John whispered. “I… This was a mistake. I take life, Gilbert. I’m not the same man you used to love.”

“Taking life is part of your nature, oui?”

John nodded. “I’m not strong enough to live without taking at least one life each night.”

Lafayette looked sad. “Then take those who hurt others, and come back to me.”

“Are you certain?”

“I am.”

“I have to leave now, but I will come tomorrow at night. I promise.”


	26. Chapter 26

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things change between Alexander and Thomas.

**The Capitol**

Alexander waited for Thomas to finish his last meeting of the day and come to his bedroom. He was standing in a corner, invisible to the slaves’ eyes. They could sense him, though, at least one of them. Alexander had read about African gods, and how the slaves seemed to maintain their beliefs even after being baptized. 

Maybe they were more sensitive to things that the modern world had forgotten, or maybe Alexander was reading too much in the books Lafayette sent to Thomas. It had been a while since Lafayette wrote to Thomas and told him that John Laurens was there with him. Thomas had cautioned Lafayette about Hennu, and told him the truth about Alexander. As much as Alexander did not want John to be sad, he had to protect his friend’s life or un-life. Thomas had asked Lafayette to make sure that Hennu never knew that Alexander was with him in the Capitol. 

Alexander wished he could see John and Peggy again. He knew that she was still alive, for Thomas had told him of the night she helped James Madison recover from one of his seizures. Alexander only hoped that Atrah didn’t kill Peggy because of that. 

Once the slaves were gone, Alexander quickly took shape and lay down on Thomas’ bed. He was solid enough to get inside the sheets, and he had hidden Thomas’ footbath more than once. This angered Thomas every time, but it had become some sort of routine for them. They also discussed politics, and Thomas would listen to Alexander’s advice from time to time.

Alexander wanted something else, though. Would Thomas agree? 

_I must be going crazy after spending so much time with him. I cannot leave his side, so falling in love with him must be part of my punishment._

Yet Alexander knew that madness of not, there were many reasons for someone to fall in love with Thomas Jefferson when you knew him well. There was still the fact that he had bedded Sally Hemings when she was only fourteen, and the fact that he kept his own children as slaves. 

_I should be disgusted, and I am, but I love him…_

“Alexander?”

Alexander sat up on the bed and made his shoes disappear as he crossed his legs. Thomas looked surprised, but there was something else in his eyes.

“I was waiting for you,” Alexander said.

Thomas sat on the bed. “Can I…?”

"What?”

Thomas closed his eyes and shook his head. “Nothing…”

Could it be that Thomas felt something for him? Alexander had noticed the change in Thomas’ attitude months ago, but he had believed it was merely the beginning of an unexpected friendship. After all, Thomas had never been with other man, had he?

“Are you trying to read my mind?”

Alexander started. “No… Not yet…”

Thomas sighed and made to stand. Alexander grabbed his wrist.

“Please, Thomas. Tell me whatever is in your mind.”

“You will believe I am a pervert.”

“Have you ever lain with another man? I have.”

“Laurens…”

“And Lafayette.”

“Lafayette too? He was a married man…”

Alexander looked away, “I know. So was John.”

Thomas cupped his cheek with his hand and made him look back at him. “I mean… I would never have guessed, but then Laurens is with him now. I have no right to judge you, Alexander, given all I have done.”

Alexander trembled. “At least you were faithful to Martha while she was alive. I…”

“Hush…” Thomas gathered him close, and kissed his forehead. Alexander looked up, and saw the conflict in Thomas’ eyes.

“I like this,” Alexander said. “I like being in your arms.”

Thomas brushed his lips with a thumb, and kissed his lips tentatively before his hands went to the nape of Alexander’s neck and slowly got rid of the green ribbon that held his hair back. The ribbon disappeared as soon As Thomas let it fall on the bed. Alexander looked at him and did the same. Thomas’ hair was red too, though there were silver strands in it now. 

“Can we do this?” Thomas asked.

“We will not know unless we try,” Alexander whispered against his lips, and then they were kissing and holding to each other as if to a lifeline. Clothes were discarded, though in truth Alexander made his own disappear just as Thomas got rid of them. 

“You are so beautiful,” Thomas whispered. 

Alexander prayed to anyone up there to allow him to retain his solid form, and gave into Thomas’ touch, guiding him when needed, touching him and discovering sensitive spots even as he moaned in pleasure himself. It was Thomas who took him, and Alexander lost all sense of himself as he drowned in a pleasure he had never felt before. Was he still a ghost? Would he disappear when this was done? 

He was still there when it was over...

“I think I love you,” Thomas said. “I wish…”

“I wish the same, and I love you too.”

Alexander knew that this had happened because he died, and that if he were still alive, he would be with Betsey, and Thomas would be his political enemy. He closed his eyes, basking in the warmth of Thomas’ arms. He no longer needed to sleep, but this was nice. He would have to disappear at dawn so nobody found a ghost that looked like Alexander Hamilton in the President’s bed. Alexander was certain that Thomas would understand.


	27. Chapter 27

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peggy visits Alexander.

Peggy knew that she shouldn’t be doing this, but after years of roaming the darkness alone, she needed to speak with someone who had known her when she was still alive. Atrah had sent Peggy a letter saying that she would not come back. Hennu had been killed in a new vampiric war, a new attempt as seizing the Mother and imprison her to drink from her blood. Being so old and so powerful, she had become still like a living statue. She no longer needed to drink, and if she stayed in the sun her skin would darken while her children burned and died, especially the youngest ones. 

The Mother’s husband, her first child, had died centuries ago, after a war like the current one. Now she was alone, and only her closest children prevented the renegades from taking her away. Atrah was one of them, and Hennu, her child. They both had been there, but a powerful vampire had cut Hennu’s head off, and burned it with his power before Atrah could stop him. In the end the Mother had risen and burned the renegade vampire, but Hennu was gone. 

_I have to stay in Egypt until peace is restored again. You have made it clear that you no longer wish for my company, and you are strong enough to survive on your own. I will always love you, my Margaret. Be safe._

Peggy was sad and relieved at the same time. Sad because she had loved Atrah with all her heart. Atrah had been her maker, her teacher, her lover. She had rescued Peggy from the hands of illness and death, and showed her a new world she had never imagined before. But Atrah had allowed Hennu to kill Alexander and take John away. At least John was free to stay with Lafayette now. James Madison had told Peggy about that, one night they met at the cemetery. Hopefully John would stay safe.

If John knew that Hennu had killed Alexander…

Peggy shook her head. There was no use in telling that to him now, and sending a letter overseas was not easy for a vampire. Atrah had human agents that did these things for her, without knowing that she was a vampire. Peggy knew one of them, but she could not risk Atrah knowing that Alexander was an earthbound ghost. 

God knew what vampires did to ghosts. 

Could vampires hurt ghosts?

The Capitol was already in view, and Peggy moved cautiously, melting with the shadows. Would Alexander sense her coming? Was it possible for vampires to read the mind of a ghost? James Madison had given her few details. All she knew was that Alexander could not leave Jefferson’s side. Peggy would have to enter the house.

Thankfully Thomas was already asleep, and though Alexander was at his side, he was able to come to the receiving area of the President’s quarters. Peggy had no wish to intrude in Thomas’ life. She sat in a settee to wait, and after a moment Alexander took shape and stood in front of her. Alexander looked solid, nothing like the ghost James had described to her, but then it had been Thomas’ version of Alexander’s first appearance.

“Hello, Peggy.” He took her hand. “You have fed. I’m happy to see you again.”

“Alexander… I believed you gone. When James told me that you were here…”

He sat beside her. “Are you seeing James Madison on a regular basis?”

“No, but we have met once or twice in a cemetery…”

Alexander looked troubled. “Peggy, I know you and Atrah---”

“Our relationship died the night Hennu killed you. I have been her prisoner, and reluctant companion for a while, but now she is gone and I don’t think she will be coming back ever again.”

“Good. I didn’t want Atrah to kill you, and I don’t think you will become a ghost attached to Madison.”

“Why are you here, Alexander?”

“I don’t know, but I believe it is a punishment for cheating on Eliza, for letting my son die in that duel… for letting Burr kill me…”

Peggy looked at Alexander speechless. She knew that he had fired at the sky, but she had never realized that Alexander had a death wish.

“You let Eliza alone with seven children, and one of them sick!”

Alexander looked down. “That too…”

Peggy took his hand. “I am sorry, Alexander. You have suffered too. We all have. I didn’t come here to make you feel bad.”

Alexander looked at her. “Why did you come, Peggy? I’m happy you did, but why did you come here tonight?”

“Because I feel lonely.”

Alexander embraced her and kissed her forehead. “I feel lonely too, at times, but I have Thomas… Don’t ask,” He added when Peggy stared at him, surprised, “Come here whenever you want, but please stay safe, Peggy. Stay alive.”

"I will, I promise."

She still had to tell Alexander that Hennu was dead, and that John was safe from him, but for now Peggy needed to be in his arms and feel that she would not spend eternity alone


	28. Chapter 28

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lafayette comes back to America, and visits Thomas Jefferson.

**Monticello, 1824**

Gilbert’s carriage was approaching Monticello at last. After so many years away, he had returned to America to see his friends, and the young nation he had helped to build. Georges had come with him, and Gilbert was glad for his son’s company. He could have made the voyage alone, but his son wanted to come back and see these lands again. Gilbert was old now, though the young man who escaped France so many years ago was still living inside him.

He’d had to leave John in France, and that worried him. John was still reckless, and now he knew what had happened to Alexander. Gilbert would have brought him hidden in a coffer, and given him blood during the trip, but Georges would have made questions that Gilbert could not answer. Nobody knew that a vampire lived with him and slept in one of the castle’s underground vaults, or that a ghost lived in Monticello. 

John had promised to stay put, and refrain from doing anything reckless. Gilbert had been forced to tell his lover what happened to Alexander after a too vivid nightmare had woken him while John was in his bed. Alexander had written him a letter, explaining how Hennu looked, and how the ancient vampire had killed him. Hennu was dead now, but none of them knew about that back then.

_How could you not tell me, Laf?_

_Because I knew you would react like this, and I wanted you to stay safe. Alexander and Peggy wanted you to be safe._

_So Alexander is a ghost now?_

_Oui, and he lives with Thomas._

_I will kill Hennu!_

_Hennu is too strong, Jacky. Please promise me that you will leave the castle if he comes back and commands you to do it._

_Is that what you want?_

_If it is the only way to keep you safe, yes. Promise me, Jacky._

_All right, I promise._

Gilbert had known that John would rebel if Hennu ever came back, but he hoped that a threat to his life would give John pause. After all, Gilbert was not the President of the United States. Hennu could kill him without meddling with Human history.

Hennu had died defending that vampire Mother a few months later, and since then Gilbert had lived a happy life with John, and his family. Now his own time was close, and he still worried for John. What would happen when he died?

_Let me give you the Blood, Laf. _

_I love you, Jacky, but I also love my family. I cannot abandon them._

_You are right. I shouldn’t have asked. _

_But I would do it if I were alone, mon amour. _

_I just don’t want you to die…_

_I will not die, not yet. You must write to Peggy, find a way to go back when my time comes._

_No!_

John had left in a rage, but then he had returned and rushed to embrace him so fast that they had both fallen to the floor. Gilbert had hit his head, and lost consciousness. John had given him a few drops of his blood… 

_I am sorry! I was so scared… I thought I had killed you!_

_I am alive, and you are even more beautiful than I thought…_

_It’s the blood. Forgive me, Laf._

_I forgive you…_

“Father? We are here.”

Gilbert blinked and smiled at his son. “Are you all right? You look pale.” “I am well, Georges. It’s the emotion of seeing my old friends.” Thomas was waiting for him at the top of the stairs, and Alexander was standing beside him. Apparently only Thomas and Gilbert could see him, though. Many people had come to wait for his arrival. Gilbert proceeded to come down from the carriage, mindful of Georges’ concern, but determined to do it without help. Thomas looked frail. Alexander in his forties. Thomas came down the stairs and Gilbert hurried to his side, and they both embraced, tears rolling down their faces.

  



	29. Chapter 29

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lafayette speaks with Thomas and Alexander.

Alexander sat in his favorite armchair in Thomas’ office, watching his lover and Lafayette. They were speaking of politics, of the death of Adrienne, of Napoleon’s rule and James Monroe’s presidency. They looked beautiful to Alexander, as every mortal did to a vampire, or a ghost who had been a vampire… They were alive, and he was dead. Alexander could not fail to see the signs of mortal aging, of impending death…

It saddened him.

Thomas’ health was failing already, and Alexander could do nothing to stop it. If he were a vampire, he might have offered Thomas the Blood, but that would have meant abandoning his family forever. There were few “old” vampires, but Alexander wouldn’t have minded it at all. 

He was no longer a vampire, though. He was just a very solid ghost in love with a man who would die one day. 

_What will happen to me when he dies?_

"Alexander? Are you all right?”

Alexander blinked and looked at Lafayette’s concerned face. 

Where was Thomas? 

“Thomas went to his room to bring an old book he wanted to show me. He said that sometimes you just…”

“What?”

“Seem to be in another place. Thomas is afraid that you will leave one day. Is that so? Are you feeling like…? Is something or someone calling you?”

“Is that what Thomas thinks?”

Lafayette nodded. “He is concerned, and now I am too.”

“Nothing could make me leave Thomas’ side. I would like to see Betsey and my children, but I cannot leave his house the same as I could not leave the President’s house before. I am earthbound, and linked to him.”

“Do you resent it?”

Alexander looked at Thomas, who had just returned. “Of course not! I love you. Is that why you left us alone? To have Lafayette ask me these questions? You are not strong enough to walk around the house without need!”

Thomas looked hurt, and Alexander regretted his words instantly. “Thomas, I---”

“I know I am old, Alexander. I know I might die soon.” 

“Are you sick, mon ami?”

Thomas sat at his desk. “I am not, but I fell from my horse once, and now I am not allowed to ride alone. The end is coming. It will come for us all one day.”

“I would not leave you, even if I could, Thomas. I love you. I just wish I could see my children and Betsey, but my place is here with you.”

“Because you cannot leave.”

Lafayette stood. “I will take this book and read it outside,” he said. 

Once Lafayette left, Alexander moved to Thomas’ side and brushed a few grey hairs off his forehead.

“It started that way, but you know in your heart that my love for you is real, Thomas. I wish I were still a vampire so I could prove my love to you. If I could give you the Blood---”

“You know I could never leave my family behind…”

Alexander closed his eyes. “I had no choice, Thomas, but I’m not Hennu. You would be dead to them, but you would be able to watch over them, protect them somehow.”

Thomas stood and gathered Alexander in his arms. “But you are no longer a vampire, and I fear for you. When I die, what will you do?”

Alexander trembled. “I will always be with you. That is all you need to worry about. Maybe when the time comes, we will roam these lands as ghosts. Or maybe we will both leave it together.”

“I feared you were being called out of this earth.”

Alexander pulled back a little and looked at Thomas. “By whom? God? You do not believe in him.”

“Are you?”

“No, my love, and if I was ever called by God of the Devil I would fight them and stay with you. I love you.”

Thomas leaned closer and placed his lips on Alexander, kissing him as if this was the last time. They were both afraid to lose the other, they both knew it would happen soon.

_I will always be with you, Thomas. I love you._

  



	30. Chapter 30

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thomas Jefferson dies.

**Monticello, 1826**

He would die soon. Thomas could feel it in his bones, in his weakened body, and in the way everyone looked at him. They all tried to be strong, Patsy, Thomas, Sally, Eston and Madison. 

Alexander…

As he lay on his bed, drifting between a heavy sleep and a painful awareness of his impending death, Thomas tried to come to terms with his mortality. He had always known this moment would come, but after seeing Alexander come back from the dead, in some sort of way, Thomas had stopped thinking about his own demise.

He was old, and he had been sick for almost a decade, but now his body was about to give up and he was not ready for it. No, even after all he had seen, he was ready for this moment. He was not ready to leave Alexander behind. Would Alexander stay in Monticello once Thomas was gone? Would he leave this earth with him? 

“Father?”

“Patsy…”

“Are you in pain?”

Thomas was always in pain now, but there was no use in adding to Patsy’s suffering. He shook his head. 

“You should drink some water.”

Thomas nodded, and with Madison’s help, he sipped at the cup. “No more, please,” he whispered, and his enslaved son helped him back on the bed.

“Thank you,” he said, and looked from Patsy to Madison. Patsy knew, how could she ignore the obvious? Beverley and Harriet had looked almost white, and for that they now posed as white people in Washington. 

“Sleep now, Father,” Patsy said. 

When Thomas woke up again, Burwell and Sally were there with him. Doctor Dunglison was there too, along with Thomas, Patsy’s eldest son. As days passed, Thomas managed to speak with everyone he loved and cherished. Alexander was always there, invisible to the others, attentive to Thomas’ needs. Alexander’s hair had turned gray, as it happened when his son died. The Blood had brought some of the old reddish color, and after dying Alexander had kept it, but now he looked older if that was even possible.   
Patsy was there constantly, and so was his grandson, Thomas. Sally spent many nights taking care of him. Madison and Eston also came. His enslaved sons, the ones he had kept as servants while he allowed Beverley and Harriet to escape. Madison and Eston would be free soon, along with three other members of their family. 

Thomas was not going to free Sally, but he knew that Patsy would do it tacitly by giving Sally “her time”. Thomas wanted her to be able to stay with their sons, who would have especial permission to stay in Virginia. A woman could not live alone, no matter what Alexander said. Sally would be free to leave Monticello when Thomas died, but she would be with Eston and Madison.

“Thomas?”

It was Alexander, and he was not alone. Thomas could see a shape in the shadows. Sally had fallen asleep, and so had Patsy. 

Alexander could no longer do this.

It had to be Peggy Schuyler.

“They are asleep, nothing more,” Alexander said. “I needed to speak with you alone. I am always here, but…”

“I know. I will die today.”

Alexander bit his lip. “I am sorry…”

Thomas took Alexander’s hand and kissed it. “Not your fault, my love…”

Alexander was crying, and he looked as if he were about to lose his hold on his physical form. Thomas brushed the tears off his face, relieved to touch warm flesh. 

“I love you, Alexander Hamilton.”

“And I love you too, Thomas Jefferson. I will be here when the times comes.”

They kissed, and then Alexander lay by his side. Thomas’ eyes were closing, but he felt safe in Alexander’s arms. Peggy had left, he could feel the room temperature change. 

And then he was awake, and Doctor Dunglison wanted to give him more laudanum. Thomas shook his head and asked to see everyone. It was the Fourth of July, the fiftieth anniversary of the birth of their nation. He could feel Alexander lying at his side, less solid than before, invisible to everyone but Sally. 

Suddenly he was out of his body, floating over it and seeing his family, his whole family mourning his death. Sally looked up, tears on her face, and then Thomas felt another presence he knew well.

_It is time, beloved._

_Where are we going?_

_I do not know, but wherever that is, we are going together._


	31. Chapter 31

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Atrah comes to France to speak with John many years after Lafayette's death.

**La Grange-Bléneau Castle, France, 1850**

Lafayette had been dead for sixteen years. His beautiful lover, the man John had loved for so long had left this world. John had offered the Blood, knowing well that Lafayette would not accept it. Why, John could not understand, but he had promised not to try to force the Blood on Lafayette and he had honored his promise.

John still lived in the castle and slept underground.

If only Lafayette had accepted the Blood…

_Do you think I’m a monster? Is that why you refuse me?_

_You are my beloved, and I would share your life forever, but it would be too painful to see my family from afar. You have to understand, Jacky._

_Then I will follow you to death. I will face the sun as soon as you leave this world._

_No! No, Jacky, please… Promise me that you will find a way to cross the sea and look for Peggy Schuyler. _

_I cannot fly._

_Then give it to me, my love. I will not leave you alone._

_John had kissed Lafayette’s cheek and shaken his head. You do not want it, Gilbert. Forgive my weakness. I will find a way to cross the sea and search for Peggy. I promise._

Then Lafayette had gotten worse, and John had been forced to stay away during the day because the sun rendered him senseless. Coming to see him at nights was equally difficult because there was always someone with him, his son, his daughters, the doctors. The night Lafayette died John had smelled the imminence of death in him, and had almost offered the Blood once again. Lafayette was looking at him lovingly.

_I will always love you, my Jacky. Promise me…_

_I promise, mon amour._

And then John had moved back to the shadows and watched Lafayette surrounded by family and friends as he reached for Adrienne’s locket for the last time. 

He died before dawn, and John could feel his heart slowly breaking into pieces that would never be mended again. John’s will to live died that night, but he had honored his promise.

There was only the blood now, the hunt, the taking of victims every night to keep his undead body going on. Nobody dared to come or trouble him. John killed those vampires who dared to hunt near the castle. His power had increased with time, but he could not fly yet.

He wondered where Peggy was. The last he knew was that she hunted alone near the capitol. She had befriended James Madison, but he had been dead for fourteen years now. If she could fly, she had not tried to come to France. Why would she? Maybe she was as broken as John was.

“Margaret went to ground.”

John turned around, ready to attack, though Atrah would probably kill him. Maybe that was what he ought to do. He had survived for longer than he cared. It was time to die.

“I will not kill you, John Laurens. I will bring you back to America if that is what you want.”

John clenched his fists. “Why now? You could have come before and take me back. I would have helped Peggy---”

Atrah laughed. “To die? I know what’s in your heart, child. You are no longer of this world. I am giving you the chance to die in your own homeland.”

John looked at Atrah, really looked at her for the first time. She had loved Peggy, but she had lost her when she allowed Hennu to kill Alexander. Atrah was broken too, but she could not die. She was too powerful for that.

“Leave me alone,” he finally said. “Go back to America and wait for Peggy to rise, or go back to Egypt. I don’t care. Just go.”

Atrah looked at him for a moment, and then she was gone, a mere memory in the night. Had she been standing in front of him? Had John only imagined it? Was he going crazy at last?

Only strong vampires reached the century, Hennu had said. Only then can you be certain that your child will survive. 

John shrugged. He was nearly a century old now, but he could not bear to go on. He looked at the light slowly creeping from behind the mountains. Soon it would be up in the sky, illuminating the lands that Lafayette had so loved. He could not fly, or he would have risen up into its deadly embrace. Sleep was starting to claim him. 

He turned around and saw that Atrah was back.

"Just do it,” John said. “Take me up.”

And then he felt Atrah’s strong arms surround his body and he was lifted up the sky, and he saw a sunrise again after ninety-eight years. Atrah let go of him, and he was floating in the air, flying towards the sun, and his body was slowly burning. 

He was blind. 

He was falling. 

Arms came around him, but there were not really arms.

_Mon Jacky, at last. I could not bear to see you suffer…_

_John looked into Lafayette’s beautiful face._

_I tried…_

_I know. I am sorry. Come with me, my love._

John went into Lafayette’s arms, and the world dissolved in warmth and love. There was a bright light ahead. And then there was nothing but Lafayette.

  



	32. Chapter 32

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Atrah hopes that Peggy finds happiness again...
> 
> Done! 
> 
> There will be a sequel. I hope you enjoyed my story! :)

**Egypt, 1900**

Atrah looked at Margaret sitting alone in their house’s courtyard. She was always like this after the hunt, silent and lost in her own mind. Atrah had returned to America after helping John Laurens to die, and she had waited patiently for Margaret to rise. 

It had happened nearly the end of the last century, but the vampire that had risen from the ground was no longer the woman that Atrah had loved and cherished. Margaret’s mind was gone, lost in the pain her short mortal existence and the death of her friends had caused her.

Hennu would have killed her if she had been his child, but Atrah could not bring herself to do it. So, she would take Margaret’s hand every night and lead her into the darkest corners of Cairo. That was the only moment when Margaret seemed to be alive, when her vampiric senses caught the scent of blood. Atrah did not need to do anything but watch as Margaret fell over her prey and sank her fangs into the vein of men and women alike. She always drained them past the point of death, and then sat there, blood tears falling down her pale face. 

Only then would Atrah come close and wipe the blood with a crimson handkerchief. Margaret would look at her like a child looks at her mother and them fall back into her current state. 

Silence, madness, death…

Margaret had to die, but Atrah could not bring herself to do it.

“Atrah…”

It was her brother, Ahmed, a vampire as old as herself. He was looking at Margaret now. Atrah moved to stand between them. 

“No!”

“You cannot do it, sister. I can.”

Margaret blinked and looked at Ahmed, her eyes focused on him, lost to his power. Atrah reached for Margaret, but Ahmed pushed her hand away.

“Do you want the others to lock her under the earth? She will be wake up, entombed forever, losing the last of her sanity because of the thirst.”

Margaret was standing now, her arms locked around Ahmed’s neck. Atrah tried to move once again, but an invisible power prevented it. 

“They are coming for her,” Ahmed said. “Let me give her a sweet death.”

Atrah finally nodded, and the power around her faded away. She could still feel the tendrils of power around her, though, ready to restrain her if needed. She could feel the other vampires' presences. They were watching, waiting.

Ahmed kissed Margaret softly, and then he sank his fangs in her delicate neck. He started to drink, and searched through her memories, allowing Atrah to see through his mind. Atrah saw Margaret as a child, happy and full of energy. She saw her beloved being brave during the war. Her life with her sisters, the birth of her son. The first years of their love, when everything seemed to be all right. Margaret had loved her, still loved Atrah, but when Hennu killed Alexander their happiness had died. 

“I love you, Margaret,” Atrah said out loud. 

Margaret looked at Atrah and smiled, and then she closed her eyes, her heart beating in unison with Ahmed’s, trying to keep the pace until it stopped. Once it was done, Ahmed rested her body on the ground and together they burned Margaret’s body. 

“Good bye, my love,” Atrah said, and scattered the ashes. “May you be reborn one day and find the happiness that I could not give you.”

  



End file.
